Baptism is the first solemn event in the life of a small newborn man, which his parents remember for the rest of his life. On the day of baptism, a baby is washed by holy water from sin and enters the gates of the Church of Christ. One of the binding attributes of baptism is a cross on the chest, which is worn on the child at the end of the sacrament. What cross is better to buy for the baptism of your baby? Are there any church rules for this? Answers to these questions can be found in our material.
Immediately it is necessary to say that there are no strict canons concerning the cross in the Orthodox Church. The practice of wearing crosses by Christians has its roots in the fourth century, when Christianity became a settled religion in the empire. Before that, Christians often wore medallions depicting fish or other symbols denoting Christ. It's impossible to say exactly from what time they started to put crosses on newly baptized babies. But since young children were baptized from the earliest centuries of Christianity, it can be assumed that the actual crosses began to be worn on children at the same time as for adults, that is, from the 4th century.
Nowadays, you can find on the market a lot of various cross-stitch crosses of any shape, and made of all available materials. Therefore, when choosing a cross for the baby, you should familiarize yourself with the following recommendations:
1. Buying a cross is best in special church stores dealing with the sale of religious products. They monitor the quality of their goods, and immediately invite a priest for his consecration.
2. Selecting a cross for the baby, do not forget that the baby does not care what precious metal is made of his cross, the main thing for him is comfort and convenience. Therefore, for babies it is necessary to buy a small cross and without sharp corners, which can harm the tender skin of the baby. Also pay attention to the eyelet for the chain or lace, it should be without chips and cracks.
3. There are simply no prescriptions indicating which metal to make a cross for the baby in Christianity. This moment the Church leaves at your choice. Usually in practice, parents buy a small silver cross that hangs on a short lace that can not get tangled around the child's neck. Products from gold rarely buy for children, because as a rule they cost more than silver. In addition, the baby can easily break the gold chain with active movement and lose it and his cross. Therefore, it will be more appropriate to use the materials simpler and more practical.
4. The cross must not be removed during the bathing of the baby, because sometimes it happens that wooden crosses because of frequent contact with water begin to deteriorate. In this case, you need to buy a new cross for the child, and the old cross should be burned or burned in a place that is trampled on by pedestrians or given to a church where it will be burned in a church oven.
5. The cross obtained during baptism need not be worn for a lifetime. Subsequently, it can be replaced by any other pectoral cross, and the old cross to store the houses in the holy corner near the icons.
Finally, we recall that the cross is an external symbol of our faith in the crucified and risen Christ, the faith that must be shown in good deeds and deeds decent for a Christian. And, if such an active faith lives in man, then God's grace always keeps him from all evil, manifesting himself through the nativity cross.
