Book #31

The Sign of the Cross, by Andreas Andreopolous. Hardcover.

This is a delightful little book, more interesting than the topic -- the social history of crossing one's self -- may suggest. Academic yet devotional, historical yet readable, the book manages to weave church history and the author's own experiences in an intriguing manner.

Andreopolous is an academic, and as a professor myself, I appreciate his turning an academic subject into a practical, general work. The 10 pages of notes at the end of the book are not necessary reading, but do reflect the academic heft of the book.

As an evangelical, I have only recently begun to appreciate the contributions to faith and practice that other streams of the Church have made. Andreoppolous explains the Orthodox approach to gestures and symbols as worship, as well as the theological and practical implications of the sign of the cross, and how that meaning has changed over time.

found thise book very insightful and interesting.