And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. – Colossians 2:15
Most if not all traditions in the Church carried on from apostolic times from the record of Scriptures. But there have been some godly traditions that started in the first 200 years of the Church that were done for reasons of truth and theology. These physical actions were things that reminded believers of a great spiritual truth and belief. One of these practices is the sign of the cross. The cross of Jesus Christ is where our Lord wrought the victory over the power of sin and the devil. The cross is the emblem not only of suffering but of victory. The cross has been an early Church symbol that has lasted to this day with it being the main symbol used in most evangelical churches and all other Christian groups. Most prominently a cross is on a or behind a preaching pulpit, and especially crosses on-top of Church buildings has been a practice world-wide. In the same way an early Church practice written but obviously pre-dating A.D. 200 of making the sign of the cross, has endured till this day in various Christian groups. Tertullian in the 2nd century said, “In all our travels and movements, in all our coming in and going out, in putting of our shoes, at the bath, at the table, in lighting our candles, in lying down, in sitting down, whatever employment occupieth us, we mark our foreheads with the sign of the cross.” St Cyril of Jerusalem also mentions this practice in roughly 300 A.D. Not all reformers adopted this practice though it dates to ante-Nicene Christianity.
For example in Luther’s Small Catechism it says, “In the morning, when you rise, you shall make the sign of the holy cross, and you shall say: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Then, kneeling or standing, you shall say the Apostles’ Creed and the Lord’s Prayer.” This is repeated as a practice for the evening, as well as baptism and other special rites. John Wesley the founder of the Methodists also encouraged this practice in different occasions, one being where Elders are called to lay hands on someone anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord (James 5:14-15). In various Presbyterian Churches such as the Church of Scotland this practice is used during communion, and also in benediction when the minister concludes the service using the trinitarian blessing. Anglicans as well as some other smaller current evangelical movements also carry on this practice and tradition. The rise of the practice was mostly due to the stand of the Church on the doctrine of the trinity against many heresies that were denying that God came in the flesh (2 John 1:7). The practice of the sign of the cross was a way to solidify this theology in the minds of believers. Many also saw it was a way of proclaiming the victory of the cross over the enemy and all principalities. Also when one does the sign of the cross over themselves they are not only proclaiming the truth of who God (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) but also proclaiming their body the possession of the Lord’s. This practice shows the importance to the early Church to promote the truth of the dual nature of Jesus being fully God and fully man and the doctrine of the Trinity.