“If anyone wants to follow Me, deny yourself and take up your cross and follow Me,” the priest utters these words of the Savior when performing the sacrament of Baptism, placing a pectoral cross on the new Christian. For life, the cross, which is worn on the chest, becomes for a person a symbol of devotion to God.
It would seem that a person who has received Baptism should not have a question whether it is worth wearing a pectoral cross. Meanwhile, not every baptized person wears it.
Why do the baptized walk without a cross
If a person has been baptized, this does not always mean that he is a Christian. In the modern world, many people are baptized in infancy, and often parents do it without much faith, just because "it is so customary." In such a family, a person, even a baptized person, will not grow up to be a Christian. If a person does not believe in Christ, then he does not need to wear a pectoral cross, and relatives should not insist on this. Wearing a cross without faith - as a decoration or a magical talisman - is an outrage against a shrine, offending the feelings of Christians. You may not believe yourself, but you must respect someone else's faith.
People who consider themselves Christians and even attend church also do not always wear crosses. They can give different reasons. Someone has lost their cross, but there is no time to buy a new one, someone values their cross so much that they are afraid to lose it and therefore do not wear it, but keep it in a secluded place. Someone is convinced that faith should be in the soul, external expressions are of no use to it. Some people fear that someone might notice that they are wearing a cross, and they are embarrassed to tell others about their religious beliefs.
From a Christian point of view, all these excuses are not convincing. If the cross is lost, it is easy to buy a new one in the same church that a person regularly visits, and it is too rare for a Christian to go to church. The fear of losing the cross is, of course, a sign of reverent attitude towards the shrine, but in everything you need to know when to stop, and in reverence as well. Material expressions of faith - including the wearing of the cross - are needed because a person has not only a soul, but also a body, and faith should encompass the entire human being as a whole, and not just one part of it. Of course, it is not worth showing off your faith, therefore, the cross is worn under clothes, but it should not be hidden as something shameful.
Thus, if a person is not only baptized, but also a believer, then there is no reason to walk without a pectoral cross. The refusal to wear the cross in this case indicates a not entirely clear understanding of the Christian doctrine.
When is it permissible to walk without a cross
One can understand that Christian who walks without the cross because he is forced to hide his faith, finding himself in a hostile environment. For example, in Western countries, wearing a pectoral cross may be followed by dismissal from work. But if you can choose the country of residence, then relatives with whom you have to live under the same roof are not chosen, and they, too, can be hostile towards the Christian faith. However, even in such cases, Christians find a way out - for example, by sewing a cross to clothes from the wrong side, so that no one will guess about its presence.
There is nothing wrong with removing the cross for the duration of a medical procedure - for example, an X-ray examination or surgery, if requested by the doctor. But you shouldn't take off the cross while visiting the bathhouse. If there is a concern that in the steam room the metal cross and chain may get hot and cause burns, you can put on a wooden cross on a string.
