What is the sign of the cross? 

The sign of the cross is an ancient Christian practice of marking the shape of the cross of Christ upon oneself or upon another person or object. 

How do you do the sign of the cross? What is the correct way to cross yourself? 

To “cross yourself,” take your right hand and put your thumb, index, and middle finger together. In Western Christianity, you then touch your forehead, the center of your chest, your left shoulder, and your right shoulder. In Eastern (Orthodox) churches, you touch your right shoulder before your left shoulder.

What does it mean to cross yourself?

Making the sign of the cross is a tangible way to mark ourselves as Christ’s. Crossing yourself or someone else is an act of sanctification, a physical reminder that you/they are set apart as holy for Christ. Because it is often done at the mention of the Trinity (“Father, Son, and Holy Spirit”), the sign of the cross is also a physical reminder of belief in the Triune God.

Why do Christian make the sign of the cross?

Making the sign of the cross is a tangible way to mark ourselves as Christ’s.

Cyril of Jerusalem wrote: “Let us not be ashamed to profess the Crucified One; let us confidently seal our forehead with our fingers, let us make the sign of the cross on everything, on the bread we eat and over the cup we drink. Let us make this sign as we come and go, before sleeping, when we lie down and when we arise, while traveling and while resting.” For Cyril, it was important to make the sign of the cross as a profession of faith.

Crossing oneself is an act of sanctification.

Sanctification means “setting apart.” Our souls, our bodies, and our lives are sanctified—set apart for Christ, under and in his cross. For example, many people sign themselves before receiving communion. They are set apart to God.

When marking the cross upon our children, we are tangibly setting them under Christ’s cross. When signing our food, or our house, or another object, we are setting that apart as holy in Christ and giving thanks to God.

The sign of the cross is a prayer in itself.

It is often accompanied by a prayer, either aloud or in one’s own mind and heart. Usually, the spoken prayer is “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Which brings me to my next point.

The sign of the cross is a marker of belief in the Triune God.

Because the sign of the cross has been so associated with this Trinitarian formula, when we sign ourselves, we are also marking ourselves as orthodox Christians who worship and love the Triune God.

There is nothing superstitious or rote about making the sign of the cross.

Just like anything, if we choose to see it that way, it can become that. But it is not fundamentally a superstitious act. Instead, it is a fundamentally Christian act. In other words, if we make it superstitious or rote, we are denying its fundamental purpose.