Commontide
Holy Baptism — at the signing of the newly baptized (may use the Oil of Chrism)
N., receive the sign of the Cross as a token of your new life in Christ, in which you shall not be ashamed to confess the faith of Christ crucified, to fight bravely under his banner against the world, the flesh, and the devil, and to continue as his faithful soldier and servant to the end of your days. Amen.
Draft — AI-assisted research under editorial review.
When a priest signs the newly baptized with the cross, these words name what the gesture means: a life pledged to Christ, engaged in a real spiritual contest. Thomas Cranmer composed this formula for the first English Prayer Book in 1549, adapting an ancient signing practice into English wording that proved durable enough to persist, lightly modernized, into the ACNA BCP 2019.