Good Friday

Good Friday
the Friday before Easter, a holy day of the Christian church, observed as the anniversary of the Crucifixion of Jesus.
[1250-1300; ME]

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Friday before Easter, commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus.

As early as the 2nd century it was kept by Christians as a day of penance and fasting. The Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches have special liturgies for the day, which include readings and prayers commemorating Christ's sufferings on the cross. Protestant churches also hold special services on Good Friday.

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      the Friday before Easter, the day on which Christians annually observe the commemoration of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. From the early days of Christianity, Good Friday was observed as a day of sorrow, penance, and fasting, a characteristic that finds expression in the German word Karfreitag (“Sorrowful Friday”).

      According to the Jewish calendar, Jesus died on 15 Nisan, the first day of Passover, which according to the Gregorian (Western) calendar (Gregorian calendar) would be April 7. Christians, however, do not commemorate this fixed date. Instead, they follow the apparently flexible date of the Jewish Passover—which conforms to the Jewish lunisolar calendar rather than the Gregorian solar calendar—by relating Jesus' last meal with his disciples on the evening before his Crucifixion to the Passover seder. While this assumption is problematic, the dating of both Good Friday and Easter has proceeded on this basis. Thus, Good Friday falls between March 20, the first possible date for Passover, and April 23, with Easter falling two days later.

      The question of whether and when to observe Jesus' death and Resurrection triggered a major controversy in early Christianity. Until the 4th century, Jesus' Last Supper, his death, and his Resurrection were observed in one single commemoration on the evening before Easter. Since then, these three events have been observed separately, with Easter, as the commemoration of Jesus' Resurrection, considered the pivotal event.

      The liturgical celebration of Good Friday has undergone various changes over the centuries. In the Roman Catholic (Roman Catholicism) church the mass was not celebrated on Good Friday until the late Middle Ages. When it began to be celebrated only the officiating priest took communion. Laypeople have also communed on Good Friday since 1955. The liturgy of Good Friday consists of the reading of the Gospel Passion narrative, the adoration of the cross, and communion. In the 17th century, following an earthquake in Peru, the Three Hour Service, a prayerful meditation on Jesus' “Seven Last Words on the Cross,” was introduced to the Catholic liturgy by the Jesuits (Jesuit). It takes place between noon and 3 PM. Similar services occur in the Eastern Orthodox (Eastern Orthodoxy) tradition, where no communion is celebrated.

      In the Anglican Communion, The Book of Common Prayer provides for a specific celebration of the Eucharist on Good Friday. The Three Hour Service has become common in North American churches, and a variety of liturgical services are held on Good Friday in other Protestant (Protestant Heritage) churches. With the revival of a liturgical emphasis in Protestantism in the second half of the 20th century, a distinct trend developed to adopt Catholic ritual (no use of the organ in the service, draping of the cross, baring of the altar, etc.).

      Unlike Christmas and Easter, which have acquired numerous secular traditions, Good Friday has, because of its intense religious connotation, not led to an overlay of secular customs and practices.

Hans J. Hillerbrand
 

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Good Friday — • The Friday on which the Church keeps the anniversary of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Good Friday     Good Friday      …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Good Friday — Good Good, a. [Compar. {Better}; superl. {Best}. These words, though used as the comparative and superlative of good, are from a different root.] [AS. G[=o]d, akin to D. goed, OS. g[=o]d, OHG. guot, G. gut, Icel. g[=o][eth]r, Sw. & Dan. god, Goth …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Good Friday — late 13c., from GOOD (Cf. good) in M.E. sense of holy, also especially of holy days or seasons observed by the church (early 15c.); the word also was applied to Christmas and Shrove Tuesday …   Etymology dictionary

  • Good Friday — n [U and C] the Friday before the Christian holiday of Easter, that Christians remember as the day Jesus Christ was crucified …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • Good Friday — noun count or uncount the Friday before Easter, which Christians remember as the day that Jesus Christ died …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Good Friday — ► NOUN ▪ the Friday before Easter Sunday, on which the Crucifixion of Christ is commemorated in the Christian Church …   English terms dictionary

  • Good Friday — n. the Friday before Easter Sunday, observed in commemoration of the crucifixion of Jesus …   English World dictionary

  • Good Friday — ). Pilate authorizes the Jewish leaders to judge Jesus according to their own Law and execute sentencing, however the Jewish leaders reply that they are not allowed by the Romans to carry out a sentence of death (). Pilate s wife had seen Jesus… …   Wikipedia

  • Good Friday —    It is startling that this, the most mournful day in the Christian calendar, is a cheerful Bank Holiday, and a traditional date for various games such as *skipping and *marbles. Traditionally, it was the day for certain tasks in the vegetable… …   A Dictionary of English folklore

  • Good Friday —    The Last Friday in Lent on which we commemorate the Death of our Lord. It is called Good Friday from the blessed results of our Saviour s sufferings, for by the shedding of His own most precious Blood He obtained eternal Redemption for us. It… …   American Church Dictionary and Cyclopedia

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