Why Do Catholics Cross Their Forehead, Lios and Heart Before the Gospel Reading

I was a shy, nerdy kid who steered away from being the middle of attention. I preferred silence to noise, and my own company to big parties. My truthful passion in life was reading. I could hole up lonely in my room for hours, devouring book after book.

So when my mom gave me the pick of going to Sunday school or reading in the pew during Mass, the choice was easy! Normally, I would be engrossed in my book and oblivious to what went on around me, but 1 twenty-four hours, I lifted my eyes upwards during the service.

The priest was making the sign of the cross on his caput, lips, and heart. Then he started the Gospel annunciation. I was transfixed. He was reading, and people were listening. It was placidity, and God was speaking. The moment felt holy and magical. It drew me away from my solitary action and into the communal experience of God'southward presence. And it all started with the priest crossing himself three times.

RELATED: Catholic Mass Isn't What I Thought Information technology Would Be — It's So Much More than

Even when I journeyed away from the Cosmic Church in high school, I never forgot the power of those crosses over the head, lips, and heart.

Eventually, I married a Protestant human with a Master of Theology. One day, he saw me open my Bible and slowly brand three minor crosses. He asked me what I was doing, and I responded eagerly, "Oh it's this Catholic matter! They do information technology before the Gospel is read at Mass. I'm asking for God's discussion to exist on my listen, on my lips, and in my heart." (I was exhilarated to know something about faith that he didn't!)

My husband'south question prompted cocky-reflection: Why had I carried this tradition with me for and then long? Where does it come from? How did information technology become part of Mass? What is its truthful meaning?

My research yielded this beautiful estimation of the practice: "We cantankerous our forehead so that the Word of God may be in our thoughts and purify our minds. We cantankerous our lips so that our speech may exist holy and incline us to share the Gospel with others. And we cross our hearts to invite God to strengthen our love for him and others. All of this is so that nosotros might know, proclaim, and love Jesus Christ all the more." What a perfect summary of the purpose behind my deceptively unproblematic three cross prayer!

LISTEN: Why Do We Bless Ourselves During Mass?

Across understanding the meaning of this gesture, I wanted to know its history. I learned that the commencement record of making the sign of the cross before the Gospel proclamation was in the ninth century. Benedictine Monk Remigius of Auxerre (d. c. 908) wrote that the congregation signed their foreheads every bit the deacon signed his forehead and chest.

Afterwards, this practice was solidified by Pope Innocent in the 11th century. He declared that the deacon would make the sign of the cross on the Bible, then together with the congregation, anybody would sign their foreheads, lips, and chests.

This ancient tradition was handed down from the fourth dimension of Remigius to me. That'due south over one,100 years and untold billions of people approaching God'south discussion with this aforementioned gesture. These crosses connect me to my ancestors of organized religion, just their power and purpose don't stop there.

When I served as a Jesuit volunteer in Tanzania , I started going to weekly Mass over again. The service was in Swahili, and I was out of Catholic shape. So I often felt lost: sitting when others knelt or mumbling under my breath when I couldn't recall the correct responses. But so, right before the Gospel, came my shining moment. Together with my Tanzanian brethren, I made the crosses over my head, lips, and center. The gesture grounded me and connected me to the people effectually me. Even if I couldn't understand the words, we stood every bit one body before our God and King.

RELATED: What Missionary Piece of work Taught Me About Longing for Home

The three cross prayer reminds me that encountering God is not a solitary action. When I make that gesture, I am not the kickoff, the final, or the simply person praying for God's give-and-take to be on my mind, lips, and heart. Instead, I am joined by believers effectually the globe and throughout the generations in our collective desire to know God. And even if we have unlike pare tones or customs, wear different apparel or speak unlike languages, we are united as God'south children. We are non alone, and we truly are more alike than we are different.

I am still nerdy and shy with a preference for silence. I still love to read alone in my room. Simply when I open my Bible and brand those three crosses, I am no longer alone. That gesture unites me with my brothers and sisters in Christ across time and space. Together as one holy, cosmic and apostolic family, we inquire our Father to keep his words on our minds, on our lips, and in our hearts.

baysbleady.blogspot.com

Source: https://bustedhalo.com/life-culture/head-lips-and-heart-learning-about-unity-through-the-three-cross-prayer

Share this post