The Friday before Easter, celebrated as Good Friday, is the day on which Christians annually pay homage to the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The Christian community observes Good Friday as a day of sorrow and penance. They ‘celebrate’ the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This may not seem like a logical holiday to others, but for their community, Good Friday is celebrated to pay tribute to all the good, Jesus Christ’s death resulted in. This is probably why the festival is also called ‘Holy Friday’.
The Roman Catholics believed that God (referring to Jesus Christ) demonstrated his love for people by sacrificing himself. While we all still sin, Christ died for us.
Ever since Christ’s soul was raised after his death, Christians proclaim that the cross on which Jesus was crucified to be full of power. The resurrection of Jesus is seen as an enormous turning point for all creation, as it encourages faith in a higher power.
After Christ was crucified and buried, he was ‘reborn’ on the third day, following the divine promises mentioned in the Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 15:3. And so, Good Friday is marked as the finale in God’s plan, to save his people from their own wrongdoings and sins, if only they follow him and have faith in his plan.
The significance and importance behind the celebrations of Good Friday is to spread the message that Christ had to suffer for us all. The festival encourages people to do good in life, to others and for others. To serve society, and help another in any way one can.
This significance of Good Friday is also explained in the Holy books of Christianity, which states that the good news of the gospel is only significant and well deserved for those who can truly understand the relevance of the bad news.
Despite the festival being a dark and bleak event for the Christian community, people still observe the day of suffering and death to remind themselves to do good in life, and not take what they have for granted. The festival is celebrated to honour and remember their Christian beliefs.
On one hand the festival of Good Friday and Jesus’ demise helps to revere God as the ‘just and the justifier’. However, on the other hand, the festival also signifies the greatest triumph over evil, and God’s plan to help the people against oppression. In this manner, it can be said that the festival of Good Friday marks the day when anger and mercy intersected at the (crucifixion) cross.
The celebrations for Good Friday are usually performed in the churches during the evening hours. Members of the Church remember and revere Jesus Christ’s death by singing solemn hymns and saying prayers of thanksgiving. After Church, people get together to observe the Lord’s last supper.
Some follows of Jesus also keep a fast on Good Friday, having only a small amount of food for the entire day. Some Christians also avoid eating meat during the festival.
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