Recently I visited and attended an Anglican church I hadn’t been in before while I was on holiday. This church service was very solemn and liturgical and involved people making the sign of the cross but I noticed there wasn’t a consistent way in which people made the sign. Top to bottom first, of course, but it varied from person to person as to whether they went left to right or right to left across their chest.
So, is there an official way to do it in your church? If not, do you have a personal preference for which way you go? Please let me know!
although I am a reformed Christian I do make the sign of the cross the way the eastern orthodox believers do… I sign the cross because it helps me bring my mind back to Christ. the way the eastern Orthodox Church does it has a lot of symbolism in it. that is also why I like their cross better than the normal protestant crosses.
I personally like to hybridize the way that I do the Sign of the Cross. I come from a Catholic background and in the Roman Rite it’s typically done from left to right with all five fingers to represent the Five Wounds of Christ. In the Eastern Orthodox Church and in Eastern Rite Catholic Churches they do it from right to left and join their index finger, middle finger, and thumb to represent the Trinity and have the right finger and the pinky folded to represent Christ’s dual nature as fully God and fully human. There are different interpretations for the directions, but from what I’ve read and heard left to right represents following Christ away from the world to Heaven and right to left represents the Holy Spirit entering you and you going out into the world to live a holy life like Christ did.
I like to do the Trinity and dual nature gesture but from left to right, though I have no qualms about doing it from right to left and have done it that way. My opinion is that there is no right or wrong way to do the Sign of the Cross and that it’s a matter of preference and intention.