This Page Last Updated June 17th, 2009 (new style reckoning)
Sign of the Cross
Those Orthodox who changed the way they made the sign of the cross
did so after
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In 1589 Ecumenical Patriarch Jeremias II attempted to install himself as Patriarch of Russia. By that time the relationship between them had waned to the point where Constantinople only had an advisory role to Russia, one which was mostly ignored. The turn of events worked out far differently for Jeremias, as he was given a mere “residence” in the impoverished city of Vladimir. We should not take from Jeremias’ visit that Russia accepted the heretical sign of the cross; Jeremias was humbled by Holy Russia. Russia naturally chose one of their own to be Patriarch, namely Metropolitan Job. After the Jeremias’ fiasco the relationship between Russia and Constantinople declined even more.
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The Achimandrite Dionysius of the Athonite monastery Iveron (translator of the robber Moscow 1666-7 councils) was primarily responsible for instigating the categorical burning of Old-Rite manuscripts and condemning the two finger sign of the cross on Mt. Athos. To this day I know of visitors to Mt. Athos monasteries, like Esphigmenou, who get excommunicated for using the two finger sign. This is part of the reason why strict Old Believers say the whole of Mt. Athos has been in heresy and apostasy for over 500 years, ever since the heretical influences of the Crusaders and the downfall of Constantinople.
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From
the book, “in the shadow of Antichrist” by David Scheffel, p.141, we have this reference:
“Any version of the wrong sign is
seen as a derivative of the Latin-inspired three-finger sign introduced by
Nikon…The Old Believers interpret this configuration as an
attempt…at replacing holy with unholy trinity. The latter is seen as
consisting of the apocalyptic beast, snake and antichrist, represented also by
the three numerals 666. The view that the Nikonites and other pseudo-Christians
sign themselves with a symbol of the devil is further strengthened by the
association of the troepersite with
tobacco snuffing…”
I did learn something from my short time on Monachos. That one of my sources was in error. I am glad to be corrected. Seeing the above quote about the word “troeperstie”, I was asked what the word meant. My Old Slavonic is very elementary. At first I did remember that it had something to do with the three finger sign, I did not look back here to see the source of the question. What I did was look in this glossary from a scholarly work called Old Russia in Modern America by Alexander Dolitsky. This was the first place I knew of a definition, so I posted it. I quickly learned that this definition is not in accordance with Russian Old Belief or the source of the question above. I have learned the meaning is actually the three finger sign of the cross. This is how I sometimes learn. The Canadian Film called Old Believers explains the three finger sign saying “It is nothing!” and “It is sin; the more you do it, the more you sin!”. So Old Believers understand the three finger sign as a path to nothing that is vain and attach more meaning to such words than others do. The word “dvuperstie” is understood as the two finger sign but is also part of the way to blessedness.
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On
the left here is a print called “Rabbi: The Pinch
of Snuff” from
http://www.masterworksartgallery.com/chagall/chagall32.html
On the right is a typical heretical Nikonite example
from one of their “educational” web sites.
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Even
Timothy Ware admits that the Old Believers keep the ancient custom; saying,
“The Greek form with three fingers was more recent than the Russian form
with two: why should the Russians, who remained loyal to the ancient ways, be
forced to accept a “modern” Greek innovation?” from his famous
book The Orthodox Church.
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Constantine,
the secretary, read from a, book handed him by Aetius,
the archdeacon; Canon Six of the 318 holy Fathers. “Let the ancient
customs prevail, those of
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Here
is an account from Avvakum of his being before patriarchs during the year 1667,
‘Gudzy Zhitie’
p. 101. English translation in “Zenkovsky,
Epics, Chronicles, and Tales” p.363. (The reference to the five-finger
sign of the cross is another way of describing the two-finger sign.)
The last word they said to me was,
“Why are you stubborn? All of
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In
addition we can see that the oldest icons confirm the correct practice. On the
left is the oldest icon of Christ and which is currently in St.
Catherine’s at Sinai. The one on the right is from
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Besides
the two icons above there are many other good old examples showing the proper
form of the hand when making the sign of the cross. Look around and you can find many yourself. I have added
another page of Icon Examples in order to assist you.
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The holy Fathers have handed down to us the meaning of this holy sign, in order to refute heretics and unbelievers. The two fingers and the one hand then, represent then the crucified Lord Jesus Christ, who we profess as having two natures in one person. The right hand recalls His unlimited might and His sitting at the right hand of the Father. And one begins to trace it from above because of His decent from the heavens to us on earth. Furthermore, the movement of the hand from the right side to the left drives away the enemies and indicates that the Lord through His invincible might has conquered the devil who is on the left, a powerless and gloomy being. - St. Peter of Damascus (12th Century)
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There
is this dogmatic explanation by St. Theodoret (4th century):
“This is how to bless someone with
your hand and make the sign of the cross over them. Hold three fingers, as
equals, together, to represent the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and
God the Holy Spirit. These are not three gods, but one God in Trinity. The
names are separate, but the divinity one. The Father was never incarnate; the
Son incarnate, but not created; the Holy Spirit neither incarnate nor created,
but issued from the Godhead: three in a single divinity. Divinity is one force
and has one honor. They receive one obeisance from all creation, both angels
and people. This is the decree for those three fingers. You should hold the
other two fingers slightly bent, not completely straight. This is because these
represent the dual nature of Christ, divine and man. God in His divinity, and
manhood in His incarnation, yet perfect in both. The upper finger represents
divinity, and the lower His manhood; this way salvation goes from the higher
finger to the lower. So is the bending of the fingers interpreted, for the
worship of Heaven comes down for our salvation., This is how you must cross
yourselves and give a blessing, as the holy fathers have commanded.”
(Domostroi Excerpt, chap. 13, ed. and transl. by Carolyn Johnston Pouncy,
Cornell University, 1994)
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We
can see that the Church council, The Stoglav of 1551, likewise instructs in the
correct understanding on this point:
CHAP. 31. The sign of the cross must be made according to the
rules, in the form of a cross; and the right hand, that is, the dextral hand,
must be used in crossing oneself, with the thumb and the two lower fingers
joined together, and the extended index finger joined to the middle finger,
slightly bent; thus should prelates [and] priests give their blessing and thus
should men cross themselves... It befits all Orthodox Christians to hold
their hand thus, and to make the sign of the cross upon their face with two
fingers, and to bow, as we said before. If anyone should fail to give his blessing
with two fingers, as Christ did, or should fail to make the sign of the cross
with two fingers, may he be accursed...
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There
are Saint’s known for being found with an incorrupt hand of the Old Faith
sign of the cross. The cruel Patriarch Joachim (1674-90) was so fanatical that
he de-canonized St. Anna Kashinsky (+1337; canonized
1649) when in 1678 the Old Believers began using her as a good example to say
that the Greeks were peculiar in their practice.
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The
Book of Answers, by Barbara Berliner says that the practice of people crossing
their fingers for a good outcome “May have evolved from the sign of the
cross, which was believed to ward off evil.” The best form of the cross
that would apply to this would be the Old Believer practice.
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Some have said that in the book written by Lazarus Moore called, Seraphim of Sarov - A Spiritual Biography, that Seraphim condemns the use of the two finger sign of the cross. Here in the next link we are told that Timothy Ware says the Spiritual Biography was most likely not even written by Lazarus Moore, so I am not sure how trustworthy that biographical source is. Even if it is true that Seraphim spoke that way about the sign of the cross, the strict Old Believers would not make much of it due to the document saying Seraphim died while smoking that unholy devil incense tobacco. Seraphim’s mind was no doubt clouded, as he never did repent from many heretical errors. On page 27 of the book Human Tradition in Modern Russia it says that “in fact, Fr. Seraphim had suffocated from a smoldering fire lit when he dropped his pipe onto a heap of rags.” This was well known to those near Sarov, even though his novice would not admit to it. In the times of Holy Russia tobacco was not even allowed at all. By the time of Seraphim tobacco use was out of control.
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Bede: “The antichrists, the heretics, though
they invoke the name of Christ and make the sign of the Cross, they are
nevertheless of the world; they savor worldly things” [Commentary on 1
John, 202]
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Below
we can also see a sketch shown from a Nikonite source, a pamphlet by St. John
of Kronstadt Press titled Vatican and Russia…
which proves Nikon wrong. It shows an old Patriarch martyr blessing the good
Old Orthodox way.
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Another
very important point to make is that the Nikonite heretics place all three
persons of the Trinity on the cross with their three fingers. The good Old
Believers have known it as Latin heresy from its inception. The Old Believers correctly
place the two natures of the Lord on cross with their two fingers. Here is a link to a video on Google:
The Old Believers - Treasures of the Library of Congress
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An explanation of the enlarged scope of the Sign of the Cross is linked to the Monophysite heresy, condemned by the Council of Chalcedon. The faithful Christians desired to ephasize the Apostles teaching by using two fingers in the Sign of the Cross as a type of Jesus’ two natures. But if two fingers were to be employed, the large cross, in which forehead, breast, etc. were touched, suggested itself as the only natural gesture. Indeed some large movement of the sort was required to make it perceptible that a man was using two fingers rather than one, as the heretics continued to use only a small sign. The issue with the Sign of the Cross has been the meaning of the Christ Crucified. I made a page about the nonChalcedonians
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The same position of the Old Believer two fingers was in standard use during the Roman Senate as an indication to others that what the Senator was about to say or do was sacred and thus called for perfect attention, reverence and silence.
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There is a three finger salute in Serbia. It means SERBIA! They yell “SRBIJA”, aka Serbia. The salute is made by sports fans, and some players themselves, when celebrating victories in Football (Soccer) as they cheer. Look what the world is coming to, it is a form of worldly pride. They say it is a part of the Serbian Orthodox way of crossing with the Trinity, but as only Christ was on the cross it is not proper to put the Trinity on it. One thing they get right is crossing themselves with the right hand (as opposed to the left hand in the photo below with an X over it). There is a heretical modern statement often used by many Serbs : Nema krsta bez tri prsta (English : There is no cross without three fingers). But only Serbs open them up as a kind of salute. Some hold that sign over their heart during the anthem (Boze Pravde). They do it on the street too, if they see a fellow Serb. The salute was first represented in the painting of Takovo Uprising of 1813. Since many Latin’s collaborated with the Nazi it is no surprise to sometimes see their sign of the cross associated with this salute. See the video Serbian Three Fingers a Nazi Sign. I would note that Serbians are not exactly Croats, but there are similarities between all people. My point is that we should be keeping only what is right.
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Also we can see this cover from the Roman Catholic book pictured below, which shows the form of their hand to be just like the Serbian Nazi Sign above. As the famous Nazi leader Hitler was baptized in the Latin Church and as we can see here that the three finger sign is of Latin source, it is clear that the Serbian sign is in truth a Nazi sign. I understand that many Serbians may not appreciate the connotation, but Serbians should really consider the many ways in which they are in fact following the Latin practice and faith.
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I contribute to an Old Believer Wiki which has a page with some more info on How to Make the Sign of the Cross. It mentions a prayer ( in the pagan, vulgar language of English ) which is suggested to be spoken during the gesture. I do not necessarily see any problem saying a prayer in a sacred language, but the vulgar English certainly is out of the question. Having said that I would be neglectful if I did not also mention how the Sign of the Cross, like all Christian gestures, should be understood as a “wordless prayer” all by themselves. The touching of the Sign of the Cross is one of the prayers we offer to God with our body, similar to offerings of smell, taste, sight and sound. For prayer it is paramount to find a quite place without distractions, as much as we are able. The making of the Sign of the Cross is done with exact attention and dedication. It is a work of inner silence and peace, where we trade earthly things for heavenly. We only use words if it is necessary, which is mostly at the start of this journey. Our goal is for a pure and peaceful contemplation, it is a stillness that comes from constantly being aware of God. In the end Christ is seen by the mystery of faith which has no consideration of temporary things. This is the kind of patience that will bring the miracle of lasting joy we are all really searching for. In order to confirm this idea about silence a little more, there is a 19th century Old Believer bronze ikon called the Blessed Silence which should illustrate things slightly more.
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OLD BELIEVERS in MODERN RUSSIA page 77
“Christ’s blessing could not be made in the [westernized] three-finger form or the [modern] Greek-derived sign made to represent the words ‘Jesus Christ’.” [There are indeed many antichrists!]
On pages 78 and 79 the differences of the form of the hand are in a drawing by an Old Believer seen below. The original Orthodox Old Believer examples are on the right. Several divergences between the faithful Old-Rite and the heretical western innovations are there, such as the clerical form of the hand blessing.
In the notes of this book it shows us that there is of course absolutely no evidence for the 1666 Moscow Council’s shameless lie which said the holy apostles taught the “three-fingers”. Istoriia dvuperstiia v kartinakh, 852
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