Before you bless the cross, you need to understand why this is done. The answer to this question is very simple: a parishioner cannot participate in the Holy Sacraments if it does not have this religious attribute. This rule is established by the Cathedral. The decision is, of course, controversial and you can disagree with it. But the reality is that an Orthodox person should wear a consecrated cross.
This issue cannot be taken lightly. The cross is a serious symbol that should invisibly remind of the most important.
Before you bless the cross, answer the question of why you need it. Do you remember that this is not a magical amulet, not a way of protection from the outside world? It is a symbol of our faith, a silent reminder of the sacrifice God made for each of us.
How does the rite of consecration occur?
How to bless the cross in the church? This is perhaps the easiest. It is enough to contact the head priest or any priest with a request to conduct the sacrament of sanctification. The request will be quickly and free of charge.
Consecration takes place on specific days, they should be clarified in the temple. The priest will take your thing and sprinkle holy water on it, saying a certain prayer.
This prayer has been unchanged for hundreds of years. The priest asks the Holy Spirit to descend on this thing, so that it serves the cause of salvation by the power of the Lord Jesus Christ, recalling the sacrifice that he made by paying for our sins.
How to bless the cross at home?
Better to do it in the temple. If the ceremony is impossible for some reason or you are in the taiga, and the sacrament is needed right now, then you will have certain difficulties. Before you consecrate the cross, you need to get Holy Water. And she is only in the temple.
To conduct the ceremony on your own, you must dip the cross in water three times or sprinkle the object with water. It is important to pray with faith, asking God for the descent of the Holy Spirit on the subject.
Do not go to church?
Before sanctifying the cross, it is important to understand whether you are a church Christian. If you do not go to the temple, do not confess or partake, do not read the Bible and do not really know who Jesus Christ is, then you do not need to consecrate the cross. You are not a Christian; you may not wear it at all.
Such rites are created only for sincerely believing people. For everyone else, it’s nothing more than a piece of jewelry. And do not hope that this is not so. The Bible says that a Christian must be either hot or not. If a person is “warm” and believes in some kind of abstract God without attending church, then he is an artificial Christian.
Can I buy a cross not in the temple?
Sure. No religious canon forbids this. You can buy a cross in a church shop, in a store, or make it yourself. This is completely unimportant. The main thing is that it should be executed in accordance with the tradition of the Eastern Christian church. How to consecrate a cross bought in a jewelry store? Come to the temple and turn to the priest. Everything is very simple.
It is important to remember that every Orthodox priest is jealous of maintaining the appearance of the Russian Orthodox Church. If your cross is made in accordance with the Catholic or Protestant tradition, then during consecration one simple difficulty may arise - you will simply be refused. Therefore, before making a purchase, make sure that the cross is made in accordance with the Eastern tradition. The Bible does not say anything about this, but is regulated by the internal canons of the Russian Orthodox Church at the level of tradition.
This is explained by the strained relations between Orthodoxy, Catholicism and Protestantism. Thanks to evil people, relations between Christians around the world have been ruined and only high hierarchies of both faiths can restore their strength today.
Sacred Rites - Men's Prerogative
Many parishioners are wondering: “Can a woman cross the cross?” Unfortunately, no. Scripture very strictly regulates this issue. The Apostle Paul also wrote in his epistle: “I forbid women to teach.” This means that neither a woman should preach in the temple, nor discuss fundamental issues of faith. To do this, she has a husband who must teach his soulmate the basics of faith.
The situation is similar with the holding of sacred rites. A woman cannot participate in them. But there are exceptions.
For example, if a woman is in a country where there is not a single Christian, and the sanctification of water, a cross, and so on is required for her to strengthen in faith, then she can fulfill the role of a priest. But this rule only applies in a truly hopeless situation.
What to expect from the result?
There is no need to wait for the miracles of faith to begin to occur after the cross is blessed. Of course, God can send some kind of change in the life of man in order to strengthen him on the path to Christ. But most of this path must be completed independently.
- Give up bad habits.
- Do not offend loved ones and try to forgive offenders more often.
- Read the Bible and ask God to send you a revelation to understand what is written.
- Go to the temple and try to understand the essence of worship. Just standing is not enough, you need to understand the essence of what is happening in order to participate in the liturgy.
- Confess and partake. This is a mandatory process for a Christian. Without this, the human soul is stale, and the acceptance of the blood and flesh of Christ in the memory of him renews consciousness and returns to its true nature.
It is important to remember that the consecration of the cross is only a fraction of the great Orthodox teaching. One can do without this ritual perfectly, because as such it does not bring closer and does not remove a person and God.