Wiktionary
n. (context Christianity English) A gesture of the hand moving over the front of one's body in the shape of a cross made as part of ritual or to invoke divine protection.
WordNet
n. a gesture with the right hand moving to form a cross; used by Catholics as a profession of faith
Wikipedia
The sign of the cross , or 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 + across the body with the right hand, often accompanied by spoken or mental recitation of the trinitarian formula.
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 Christian Crucifixion narrative. There are two principal forms: one—three fingers, right to left—is exclusively used in the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches in the Byzantine and Chaldean traditions; the other—left to right, other than three fingers—is the one used in the Latin (Catholic) Church, Anglicanism, Methodism, Presbyterianism, Lutheranism and Oriental Orthodoxy (see below). The ritual is rare within other Christian traditions.
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" in both personal and legal situations.
The sign of the cross is a ritual hand motion used by some Christians. Sign of the Cross may also refer to:
- The Sign of the Cross (play), a 1895 play by Wilson Barrett
- The Sign of the Cross (1914 film), a 1914 American film directed by Frederick A. Thomson, based on Barrett's play
- The Sign of the Cross (1932 film), a 1932 American film directed by Cecil B. DeMille, based on Barrett's play
- The Sign of the Cross: Travels in Catholic Europe (book), 1994 book by Colm Tóibín
- Sign of the Cross (novel), 2006 novel by Chris Kuzneski
- "Sign of the Cross", a song by Iron Maiden on their album The X Factor
- "Sign of the Cross", a song by Terveet Kädet
- "Sign of the Cross", a song by Avantasia on their album The Metal Opera
Sign of the Cross was the second novel by New York Times bestselling author Chris Kuzneski. First published in October 2006 by Penguin Group (USA), the religious thriller followed the exploits of Jonathon Payne and David Jones, who have been featured in all of Kuzneski's thrillers. It also introduced the character of Nick Dial, who has appeared in every Kuzneski novel since.
The book was endorsed by several notable authors, including Clive Cussler, Nelson DeMille, Steve Berry, James Rollins, and Tess Gerritsen.
Penguin UK released the British version in April 2007, and the book climbed to #11 on the British bestseller list. The foreign rights to Sign of the Cross have sold in more than fifteen languages.
Usage examples of "sign of the cross".
A lot of vampires, especially the ones that survive for very long in Christian countries, are of Balkan Muslim blood, and so immune to the sign of the cross.
He saw Callahan again make the sign of the cross in the air and sighed.
When he was done with his little pantomime she looked him straight in the eye and made the Sign of the Cross.
They were making the Sign of the Cross and dropping to their knees around her, as the prayers continued to fall in that dull trancelike voice from her lips.
Ana made the sign of the cross and kissed the prayer beads she still clutched.
He worked the chain of wooden beads as he counted prayers, mumbling the words and alternately making the sign of the cross on his own shoulders and over mine.
Father Stanislaw raised his right hand, making the sign of the Cross.
After a solemn brief silence, he made the Sign of the Cross, exhaled, then turned to the driver and paramedic from the van.
A red-haired man and a freckled woman backed out of the church, glancing inward - to the right, toward the altar - each dipping their right hand in a marble holy-water basin, making the sign of the Cross.
Driven back to childhood, he made instinctively the sign of the Cross to ward him from evil, over the hammer still slung round his neck.