Good Friday

Good Friday is one of the most important days in the Christian faith. Also known as Holy Friday, Good Friday is the Friday of Holy Week, commemorating the crucifixion, suffering, and death of Jesus Christ. Good Friday is a fast day in the Catholic Church. All Christians observe this day with great humility and reverence. Fasting, prayer, readings from the gospels, meditation, repentance and abstinence from household chores and other daily activities are some ways people choose to remember the sacrifice of Christ and rededicate themselves to their faith.

The dates of Good Friday, which vary each year, occur between March 20th and April 23rd. It falls on the last Friday before Easter.

Significance of Good Friday

The goal of Christ’s death was to build a bridge between God and humanity, uniting heaven and earth with a Roman cross. The spiritual void created by sin had caused humanity to drift away from God and in an ultimate expression of love, God sent his only son to not only live a human life, but to die a human death. It is believed that Christ understands our deepest fears and problems because He has endured all man’s suffering, and paid for the restoration of humanity with His own blood.

Spiritual Significance of Good Friday

There’s an old saying: You can’t have Easter without Good Friday. Many people today express the desire to have an open heart, a loving heart, a compassionate heart. Well, how do you open your heart? Usually, it’s broken open. Jesus on the cross breaks your heart. He breaks it open. You can’t look at the crucifixion without having an experience of compassion. Only a heart broken open, one that can have compassion for those who suffer can truly appreciate the new life represented by Easter. The cross represents a gift from Infinite Mercy for us to practice patience and mercy. The principle underlying the Passion is that out of his infinite mercy, the Lord has taken our suffering upon himself. As long as any living creature is in pain, so is Jesus, for he lives at the heart of all. Wherever violence breaks out, no matter how cleverly we try to justify it, we are crucifying the spirit of Christ. ‘Patience’ and ‘Passion’ both come from a Latin word meaning to suffer or endure. When we speak of the Passion of Christ, we are recalling the suffering he endured on the cross. But it is good to realize that whenever we practice patience or enduring discomfort rather than imposing it on others, in a small way we are embracing the principle of the Passion. The cross is where we see the convergence of great suffering and God’s forgiveness. We receive Divine forgiveness, mercy, and peace because Jesus willingly took our divine punishment, the result of God’s righteousness against sin. Jesus endured the cross on Good Friday, knowing it led to his resurrection, our salvation, and the beginning of God’s reign of righteousness and peace. Holy Week is a time to clear our schedules of unnecessary activities. Our minds and hearts should be fixed on Jesus and what He did for us. Let us bear the Cross so that may be worthy of wearing the crown He wore.