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| Every day is a holiday when I live God’s good life He meant for me. |
Catholics make the Sign of the Cross thousands of times in their lives.
The movement of the hand from forehead to heart, then across left to right shoulder is how the cross motion is made.
The
significance of the Sign of the Cross has deep religious meanings. For
example, making the Sign of the Cross reverently enhances one's life in
Christ.
The sign of the cross is a: 1) a confession of faith; 2) renewal of baptism; 3) mark of discipleship; 4) acceptance of suffering; 5) defense against the devil; and 6) victory over self-indulgence.
When you make the sign across your body, you are professing a mini version of the Nicene Creed — you are professing your belief in the Father, and in the Son and in the Holy Spirit.
As a sacramental, it's a renewal of the sacrament of baptism; when you make it you say again, in effect,
"Christ died for our sins and rose to sit at the right hand of God."
Making the Sign of the Cross in symbolic to the body of Christ: You make it to remember the Body of Christ suffering on the cross for you.
You say the words as you move your hand, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
The sign of the cross is a mark of discipleship. Jesus says in Luke 9:23, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." — It's an outward declaration that “I believe Jesus Christ died for our sins.”
—Source in part: Bert Ghezzi, author of "Sign of the Cross: Recovering the Power of the Ancient Prayer" (Loyola Press).