There are a large number of religions in the world that have their own traditions, prohibitions, and behavioral features of their adherents. One of the many denominations is Catholicism: Catholic Christians live in many countries.
Belief traditions leave an imprint not only on the cult, but also on everyday manipulations, for example, on the sign of the cross, with which believers illuminate themselves. Orthodox Christians are baptized from the right side to the left, and Catholics - vice versa. This is due to the fact that representatives of Catholicism believe that this particular method of baptism is a symbol of the Lord's aversion of people from hell to heaven. In addition, he shows the openness of Catholics to God.
Two-footed sign
The two-fingered sign is one of the most popular methods used by most of the representatives of this religion: for crossing, it is necessary to connect the index and thumb, and then fold all the rest to the center of the palm. This is a symbol of the fact that Christ has a dual nature: human and divine.
The beginning of the cross is touching the shoulder to the left, then the transition to the left shoulder. After that, each Catholic brings his fingers to his forehead and chest. During the period of prayer, the sign of the cross is repeated three times. This method is most common among Roman Catholics.
As you can see at masses and liturgies, Catholics are baptized both before and after worship or prayer. Moreover, there are several ways to apply a cross, with an excellent position of the fingers.
Trinity Sign
Eastern ritual Catholics are baptized differently. To make the sign, they connect the thumb, middle and index fingers, and press the ring and little fingers to the palm. In their opinion, three folded fingers are a symbol of the Holy Trinity, and the other two symbolize the duality of Christ.
Open palm sign
One of the rarest ways to cross is using an open hand. The fingers should be open at the sign, but not spread out, the thumb can be hidden inside the palm.
Such a sign symbolizes openness to the Lord, it was characteristic of popes and high dignitaries, because it carried in itself a symbolic blessing during illumination.
In whatever way the sign is performed, it is important that the movement of the hand is always carried out from the left side to the right and always with the right hand. This is due to the fact that the left side is considered wicked and is a symbol of hell, while the right side has a positive meaning and symbolizes heaven. Thus, to cross is to move from hell to heaven.
