Many afternoons ago I was on a bus with a classmate. When we were seated I made the sign of the cross. She gave me a surprised look and then she asked, “Why did you make the sign of the cross? Don’t you trust the driver?” I told her that I made the sign of the cross not because I had no trust in the driver, but because I always place all my trust in God.
It was both my mother and father who taught me to make the sign of the cross. I cannot anymore remember if they themselves taught me to place my fingers first on my forehead, then on my belly and then on my shoulders and say the words at the same time. But I can recall that I always saw them making the sign of the cross before and after eating, before leaving the house, before and after sleeping, before entering a church, during prayer and also when they ride vehicles, etc. They taught me by example. My mother would gather us as at day’s end so we could pray the rosary kneeling together in front of our small house altar. My father is also a very prayerful man. Before leaving the house he kisses all the religious icons on our altar, and of course mother. He also makes the sign of the cross before driving his tricycle.
So, nagdako jud ko nga manguros before and after mokaon, inigsakay sa tricyle or jeep, before maligo sa banyo o sa dagat, etc. It is like second nature to me. I am so inured to making the sign of the cross that sometimes I seem to do it automatically. As in, inigsakay jud nako sa bus, for example, automatic na jud na ang akong kamot nga manguros. Labi na jud karon nga pari na ko, kadaghan jud ko manguros sa sulod usa ka adlaw. Am I just doing the sign of the cross out of habit? Or am I doing it as an expression of faith? The simple question of my classmate that afternoon as we were seated next to each other on a bus made me reflect on my faith in general and of my expressions of faith in particular.
The sign of the cross is a very ancient Christian practice. The Catholic Encyclopedia states that there is positive evidence in the early Fathers that such a practice was familiar to Christians in the second century. "In all our travels and movements", says Tertullian, “in all our coming in and going out, in putting of our shoes, at the bath, at the table, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in sitting down, whatever employment occupies us, we mark our foreheads with the sign of the cross”.
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I think the challenge is
to make the sign as the cross
always as an expression of our relationship with God.
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Remember, Tertullian said those words around the year 200+ and he was already as if saying that one must make the sign of cross almost every time one does something. Morag ang kulang na lang kay to make the sign of the cross every time we breath.
But why do we have to mark ourselves with the cross? The sign of the cross began at Calvary when Christ first made it by hanging on the cross. The early Christians made the sign of the cross to identify themselves as followers of Christ. Tracing a cross on the forehead became common almost from the very beginning of Christianity. I think you yourself make the sign of the cross many times during the day – when you get up, at work, during tests, at play, before doing something important, when you get nervous, etc. And I believe that you too sometimes do it just out of habit. But I am sure that most often you make the sign of the cross to indicate your complete trust in God.
I think the challenge is to make the sign as the cross always as an expression of our relationship with God. When you meet your best friend, for example, you hug or kiss each other. Your exchange of hugs and kisses is an expression of your deep friendship. It should be the same with the sign of the cross. When we mark ourselves with the sign of the cross it must express our intimacy with God. It must express our complete surrender to God’s will. It must convey how blessed and happy we are to be loved by him.
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So next time you make the sign of the cross
do it with a smile,
knowing that God will hug you with his presence.
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There are moments in my prayer when I feel I have nothing more to tell God. That if I were to say some more words, I would only repeat what I have just said. At such times I just make the sign of the cross. In a way it puts across this message: “Lord, I have nothing more to say. I trust that you know what I need. I love to be in your presence. Bless me with your nearness”. Each time I do this in silence, I feel that as I make the sign of the cross, God is hugging me.
The sign of cross must shape our lives. During Gospel readings we sign ourselves with three crosses – one on the forehead, another on the lips, and another one on the chest. The sign of the cross on the forehead indicates that we believe in the good news of the Gospel. The sign of the cross on the lips indicates that we must preach the Gospel by word of mouth. And the sign of the cross on the chest indicates that we must treasure the word of God in our hearts.
So next time you make the sign of the cross do it with a smile, knowing that God will hug you with his presence. Next time you make the sign of the cross do it with joy, conscious that through this act you are affirming God’s presence in your life. Next time you make the sign of the cross do it with conviction that you have a mission to reveal God’s love to other people by your very life.
it’s myt first time to ever read most of your post. I chose to read those in your favorites. This one really struck me.
Kabalo ka father, like you, I always make the sign of the cross. But I have noticed that since I got pregnant the first time (1996) then my twins (2002) until now, my sign of the cross has changed. I mean, from my forehead, to my chest and shoulders and last being my tummy. It was because when I was preggy, I always make a small sign of the cross for my baby inside my tummy. It has became a habit that I can’t break, and probably wouldn’t take the effort to!