Customer Reviews

The Sign of the Cross: The Gesture, the Mystery, the History

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4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

The gestures, the mystery, the history of the sign of the cross with emphasis from life among Orthodoxy. Wonderful. Light reading with pointers for more information. Glad I bought it. A useful, short exploration of bringing our physical bodies in line with worshipful practices.

I recommended it friedns and loand it to friends. It was very well received.

Wonderful as either an introduction to, or deeper exploration of, a fundamental Christian practice.
I highlight only the best thoughts in a book, but ended with highlights on almost every page. (Only one point seemed to me as just a little "off the mark".)
I feel that the author expresses the essence of a personal relationship with the divine (aka religion) in the context of a personal/public practice proven to promote such a relationship.
Regardless of how frequently one may make this sign (if ever), this discussion of it should motivate increased trial and practice with it.
How better to realize the presence, service, and protection of the King?

Paraclete Press sent me a complimentary copy of this book written by Andreas Andreopoulos and it's truly wonderful. I had written a review of a book on the same subject by Bert Ghezzi. Ghezzi is Roman Catholic and Andreopoulos is Eastern Orthodox. Ghezzi's book is written in a popular style that would be easy for any layman to pick up and read. Andreopoulos writes with great clarity but seems to be writing for the pastor, scholar, or educated layperson. Andreopoulos gives a very objective and thorough telling of the story of the history of the sign of the cross with lots of footnotes. It could be used for a college class or for a research paper. There is much less overlap between the books than I expected and I would recommend that both be purchased.

Chapter three, which deals with the meaning of signs and symbols is fascinating. I had never even thought of about 80% of what is dealt with in this chapter.

I did have some disagreements with the author on some of the issues dealt with in the book. The author holds to a synergistic view of salvation in which God and man co-operate. This is not much of a surprise--the author is Eastern Orthodox. Even though I disagree with him, I appreciate the way in which he presents these teachings. Andreopoulos makes it clear at the beginning of the book that he wants to write a book that is accessible to those outside of his own communion and he definitely does that. I've read books by Orthodox authors for an Orthodox audience that would be very difficult for a non-Orthodox reader to understand because of the theological jargon. Recently I've heard radio programs and read books written by Orthodox speakers or authors for what seems to be an evangelical audience. Sometimes these books and programs present Orthodox spirituality in a way in which no Orthodox Christian who has grown up in the faith would ever recognize it. Sometimes it even seems like they are being deliberately deceptive to try to lure evangelicals in. But Andreopoulos doesn't engage in any of this nonsense. He knows what he believes. He knows what his church teaches. He uses the vocabulary of his church but explains it so that it is understandable to the outsider. This is the only way that ecumenical dialog should ever take place. People should know the teachings of their church and not hide them or try to smooth over differences. They should also be able to explain these teachings in a way that is understandable to outsiders.

Has the subject of the sign of the cross been exhausted by the publishing of these two books? I don't think so. I look forward to a book written by a Lutheran or Anglican author on the same subject. But this is a great book.

This book is a great find. It has been published in paperback and I notice it in several stores that I regularly visit. The author is an `Eastern Catholic" and he brings this rich liturgical heritage to his book. The history of making the sign of the cross is discussed in detail and the author traces how it was originally developed and how changes have been made to it by the Eastern and Roman Churches. He discusses in great detail both the mechanics of the sign and also the prayers and rituals that can alongside with making the sign.

From what I have learned in reading this book I have been able to bring to the attention of many regular church goers new aspects of this old sign.

This book is a real delight to read and I strongly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a new way to do an `old" devotion.

Andreopoulos' book is now available in paperback. The book explores "historical, liturgical, and symbolic perspective(s) of the "physical gesture of crossing oneself" [xvi]. The author's intent is to portray an Orthodox understanding within a larger Christian context. His attention to a wider Christian audience avoids excessive references to the Church Fathers with the exception of the second chapter ["The sign of the Cross: It's history"]. The book focuses instead on biblical texts that form a basis for a universal discourse.

However, the author does not stray from appreciating the gesture of crossing self within an Orthodox Christian context of Byzantine Temple architecture, ancient Divine Liturgies of Sts. Basil the Great and John Chrysostom, and cultural and linguistic vessels that have borne eastern and western gestures across seas of time. For example, in discussing themes of "the cosmic Cross" [chapter 5], the author captures the poetic paradox of life and death in the Cross within a Byzantine hymn from the Third Sunday of Great Lent. Quoting from the hymn, he cites: "The fiery sword no longer guards the gate of Eden, for in a strange and glorious way the wood of the Cross has quenched its flames" [129].

Of universal appeal is the third chapter, "The need for symbols and signs," as another reviewer has already observed. This chapter entertains the necessity for human beings employing symbols and signs in every aspect of life. What I like is how Andreopoulos describes terms by using stories and anecdotes to explore even this heady topic of semiotics. Such narrative examples as these make the entire book understandable to readers from age 12-13 and up.

"The body itself is also used as a symbol" [58] when we make the sign of the Cross. Our bodies and souls unite with the Lord and we become transformed. Thus, signing the Cross serves as one of many Holy Mysteries of the Church.

Several features of this book will please many readers. Quotes from Holy Scripture come from the "New King James Version," which retains meter and rhyme from the Authorized Version of the 17th-century English court of James I. Second, suggested reading [141] contains well respected supplements to themes enetertained by this book, such as Anthony Bloom's 'Courage to Pray' [1972], and Rowan Williams' 'Ponder these Things: Praying with Icons of the Virgin' [2006]. Third, the book concludes with a combined subject and name index [151-2]. I cross-checked index entries for "Gospels," "Prayer" and "Spirituality"--finding them accurate with grateful appreciation of the book's editor(s) at Paraclete Press.

Tertullian, who died in 220, wrote of the "already ancient" practice of using the sign of the cross as follows: "At every forward step and movement, at every going in and out, when we put on our clothes and shoes, when we bathe, when we sit at the table, when we light the lamps, on the couch, on the seat, in all ordinary activities of life, we trace upon the forehead the sign." Andreopoulus does an excellent job showing how the sign of the life giving Cross of Christ developed as a devotional practice that incarnates our prayers. Although Romaphobia has scared many Protestants away from sharing in the rich devotional heritage of the ancient Faith, the author shows how the use of the sign of the Cross is an excellent and fully biblical practice.

I remember as a Lutheran being awkward even doing it in private, seeing my pastor do it only once per service. Even that was considered "too Catholic" for some parishioners. As I was exposed to the worship of the Orthodox Church I not only got over my apprehensions, but I learned that it should become one of the most natural of movements. Now I cannot imagine praying without it.

God is glorified on His Cross.

After completing this book, I have decided that it is not well written, even though it covers a very important topic.

The style is very awkward and difficult to comprehend. There are some spelling and diction mistakes, perhaps because the author is a native Greek speaker, but his publisher Paraclete Press should have picked it up and corrected it.

This paragraph from the last pages of the book I found the most useful. It summarizes the essential points. If you read it, you do not need to waste your time and/or money on the whole book:

"The sign of the cross is a reflection of this medicine given to us by Christ. It is a sign of contemplation on our sin, and as such it combines humility and the wish to triumph over sin and temptation. At the same time, it recognizes our own limitations and requests the assistance of God in our spiritual ascent and maturation. The sign of the cross reflects our personal committment to healing the disease of sin and the consequences of the Fall. It is one of the the first steps in our return towards God. Since we recognize our position and we place ourselves in his mercy and guidance, we, like the Israelites in the desert, may be healed of spiritual death." (pp. 136-137)

Greetings,

On page 31 there is an oversight, here is a quote:

"It is difficult to trace the history of when the three-finger sign replaced the two-finger sign."

We do have the source for the first teaching of the three-finger sign.

This was first made in the Latin Church. Pope Innocent III (1198-1216) gave instruction for the practice of the three-finger sign. He may not have been the first Latinizer to teach this practice.

It was this pope that sent the Crusaders who sacked Constantinople.

Since the victors always have influence over their captives, and since it is from this time that we see Orthodox change the form of the sign of the cross, we can indeed trace the history of where the heretical form of the three-finger hand sign came from.

This was not the only heretical issue that Orthodox acquired during the Latin captivity (which has never really ended), the heretical God the Father ikons also arrived on the Orthodox scene during this time.

Since page 31 mentions the Old Believers, and as they are the direction I lean on such issues, I think it would be a good study to look into Pope Innocent III as a source for the many modern Orthodox heresies which the Old Believers stand against.

The three finger sign is heresy, because the Holy Trinity was not placed on the cross. The Old Believers, with their two fingers, are correct, because the two natures of Christ were on the cross.

Forgive, John Alden