Chapter 19

Why We Should Honor the Precious Cross (Continued): Second

That it has been given to us as a weapon against the devil, and has received power to drive away evil spirits. As Cyril of Jerusalem says in Catechesis 13: “Let us not be ashamed of the Cross of Christ, but even if another hides it, you openly seal yourself on your forehead, so that the demons, seeing the royal sign, may flee far away trembling. Make this sign when eating, drinking, sitting, lying down, rising up, speaking, walking—in short, in every action. For the one crucified here is above in the heavens. For if, having been crucified and buried, He had remained in the tomb, we would have had reason to be ashamed; but now He who was crucified on this Golgotha has ascended into heaven from the Mount of Olives to the east; the Father addressing Him and saying, ‘Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.’” And in Catechesis 13: “Let us not be ashamed, then, to confess the Crucified One. Let the seal be made boldly with our fingers on our forehead, and let the Cross be made over all things; over bread being eaten and over cups being drunk; in comings in and goings out, before sleep when lying down and when rising, when traveling and when at rest. Great is this protection, a gift for the poor, without labor for the weak; for the grace is from God. A sign of the faithful, and the fear of demons. For He triumphed over them in it, making a public spectacle of them. For when they see the Cross, they are reminded of the Crucified One; they fear the one who crushed the heads of the Dragon.” And John Chrysostom: Volume 9, On the Statues;[1] Homily 11: When you are about to cross the threshold of the gate, speak this word first. I renounce you, satan, and your pomp, and your worship, and I pledge myself to you, Christ. And never go out without this declaration. This will be your staff, this your weapon, this your unconquerable wall. And together with this declaration, trace the Cross on your forehead. For in this way not only will no human being who meets you be able to harm you, but not even the devil himself will be able to harm you when he sees you appearing everywhere with these weapons.

And Isidore of Pelusium, Book 4, Letter 2, to Dorotheus. It is right to call the glorious Cross the support and glory not only of earth but also of heaven. For it upheld all creation, bestowing joy upon the heavenly beings and freedom upon those on earth, and joining together what had been separated.

One must form the Precious and life-giving Cross for oneself with the three large and first fingers of the right hand placed together in sequence. These must be placed first upon the forehead (joined together) and one says, In the name of the Father, then bring the hand down (with the fingers still joined together) to the navel, and say, “and of the Son,” then bring it a little above the right breast, and say, “and of the Holy Spirit.” Then likewise to the left; and say the Amen. Or when making the sign of the Cross, each of us can say: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

We should form the Cross upon ourselves in this way: when we place our hand on our forehead, we show that the Word of God the Father, who is in heaven, came down into the womb of the ever-virgin Mary, and became flesh and became a human being for our sake, and was crucified and buried and rose again (the descent of the hand to the navel signifies this), and was taken up into heaven, and sat at the right hand of the Father, and will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead (the raising of the hand likewise to the left signifies this). The seal of the Cross is the symbol of the confession of faith in Christ.