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From the young St. Francis de Sales's heroic efforts to bring Calvinists back to the Faith comes this succinct, eloquent defense of the age-old Catholic practice of making the Sign of the Cross, which sixteenth-century Calvinists denounced as a Popish invention and many Protestants scorn even today. Embodying the zeal of youth and the wisdom of age, this gentle jewel of Catholic apologetics traces the origins of the Sign of the Cross back to the Fathers of the Church, to the Apostles before them, and finally to our Lord Himself. Along with St. Francis's other lucid explanations of our Catholic Faith and his undaunted love even for those who hated him, this modest book helped restore to their native Catholic faith tens of thousands of heretics who not long before were intent on killing him. As they did for the Calvinists in St. Francis's day, so in our day these pages will bring you a better understanding and a renewed love the Sign of the Cross, that brief and lively exterior prayer by which, from time immemorial, God has been invoked by serious Christians before all of their endeavors. Among the other things you'll learn here: Why now is always the right time to make the Sign of the Cross Why God chooses to attach power to the Sign of the Cross Why it is made on the forehead How to convince skeptics to value and pray with it Two uses of the Sign of the Cross: do you know both of them? How the Sign of the Cross is the antidote to the Mark of the Devil Errors in the claims of those who oppose this practice The theological significance of the motions, vertical and horizontal Two reasons it has particular power against the Enemy Why you should make the Sign of the Cross publicly and often. Outside the Creed itself, there are few topics to which the Fathers testify as universally and unanimously as the pious practice of making, frequently and well, the Sign of the Cross. With the help of these holy pages, the saints love for it will enkindle yours. Soon you ll be saying with St. Jerome, "With every work, with all of my comings and goings, may my hand make the Sign of the Cross!"
Paperback: 128 pages
Publisher: Sophia Institute Press (August 1, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1933184973
ISBN-13: 978-1933184975
Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.4 x 7 inches
Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (60 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #50,030 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #19 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Catholicism > Roman Catholicism #58 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Worship & Devotion > Ritual #62 in Books > Christian Books & Bibles > Worship & Devotion > Prayerbooks
St. Francis de Sales' little treatise entitled The Sign of the Cross begins by explaining how to make the sign of the Cross. It may seem like a no-brainer at first, but I'd bet that very few Catholics know why we make the Sign of the Cross the way we do. To summarize St. Francis de Sales, we use our right hand, because it is "the more worthy of the two." With our right hand, we use either three fingers to represent the Trinity or five fingers to represent Jesus' five wounds. We begin the prayer by placing our right hand on our forehead to acknowledge that God the Father is the one from whom all things originate. Next, we move our hand down to our stomach as a sign that Jesus proceeded from the Father. Lastly, we cross ourselves from left shoulder to right shoulder to show that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son and that He is the bond of love between Father and Son. Let that information sink in, and reflect on it going forward each time you make the Sign of the Cross.The rest of this book deals with the origins, history, uses, and benefits of the Sign of the Cross. For example, did you know that in early times the Sign of the Cross was made on the forehead? It eventually evolved to its present form, but early Christians put the Sign on their forehead both as a profession of faith and an invocation of God's assistance in every aspect of their lives. The most fascinating chapter to me was entitled "A Defense against Demons." In this chapter, St. Francis de Sales quotes various Church Fathers, from St. Athanasius to St. John Chrysostom, all of whom speak about the power of the Sign of the Cross over Satan and his minions. It is truly a simple but powerful weapon that so many fail to realize they possess.
Everything I had assumed about the Sign of the Cross has been confirmed with in this book, plus where the usage came from.Before I converted to Catholicism, I had allowed myself to become seriously disconnected with God, first it was with the discovery of Buddhism, though I'm not saying there's anything wrong with Buddhism it has alot of beneficial advice to it, but I had allowed myself to get to the point that I thought I knew it all and that God did not exist and everything that happens is because of Karma (well, to some extent yes) but not everything as I now know. I thought for a while that I was just as powerful as God, thanks to new age conditioning like the book Three Magic Words. How sorely I was wrong.Using the Sign of the Cross for the first time in my life ever, came about as a result of watching the movie The Rite (for some odd ball reason I like Exorcist movies, maybe that was God's way of keeping me near), anyways at the end of the movie, I was so inspired by the priest's role in defeating the devil, that at oft times I will act out scenes from a movie, I dunno why I do this, but it's fun for me. I was facing the TV pretending to be the exorcist priest, then suddenly turned directly around (due to lack of room, small bedroom) and faced a shelf with clothes and stuff on it and said while making the Sign of the Cross outwards, "God the Father commands you!
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