Making the sign of the cross Latin : signum crucis , also known as blessing oneself or crossing oneself , is a ritual blessing made by members of some branches of Christianity. This blessing is made by the tracing of an upright cross or Greek cross across the body with the right hand, often accompanied by spoken or mental recitation of the Trinitarian formula : "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
The use of the sign of the cross traces back to early Christianity , with the third-century treatise Apostolic Tradition directing that it be used during the minor exorcism of baptism , during ablutions before praying at fixed prayer times , and in times of temptation. The movement is the tracing of the shape of a cross in the air or on one's own body, echoing the traditional shape of the cross of the crucifixion of Jesus.
Where this is done with fingers joined, there are two principal forms: oneβthree fingers to represent the Trinity , [ 3 ] right to leftβis exclusively used by the Eastern Orthodox Church , the Church of the East , Eastern Lutheran Churches and the Eastern Catholic Churches in the Byzantine and Syriac Christian traditions; the otherβleft to right to middle, other than three fingersβsometimes used in the Latin Church of the Catholic Church , Lutheranism , Anglicanism and in Oriental Orthodoxy.
The ritual is rare within other branches of Protestantism. Many individuals use the expression "cross my heart and hope to die" as an oath , making the sign of the cross, in order to show "truthfulness and sincerity", sworn before God, in both personal and legal situations. The sign of the cross was originally made in some parts of the Christian world with the right-hand thumb across the forehead only.
Historically, the sign of the cross was made from the right to the left, as done in the Eastern Orthodox Church. In the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic Eastern Catholics churches, the tips of the first three fingers the thumb, index, and middle ones are brought together, and the last two the "ring" and little fingers are pressed against the palm. The first three fingers express one's faith in the Trinity, while the remaining two fingers represent the two natures of Jesus, divine and human.
