Good Friday

[HazelWings]

Could someone explain to me what Good Friday is?

 

[singpeace]

Hi HazelWings.

Good Friday is a Christian Holiday that celebrates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death on the cross at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, which is the day Jesus rose from the grave.

Based on the Gospels, the Crucifixion of Jesus was most probably on a Friday.

The Apostle Peter's reference to a "moon of blood" in Acts 2:20, points to Friday, 3 April AD 33.

 

[HazelWings]

So Friday celebrates the day he was crucified, and then Easter celebrates the day 3rd day he rose? My past beliefs always lumped the two events together so I always thought Easter celebrated both his crucifixion and his rising.

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

In a orthodox and traditional sense, Easter Sunday is meant to represent the day our Lord was resurrected from the dead on the third day of His death. Good Friday represents the day of His crucifixion, in the modern day of protestantism that we live in, the old days of orthodoxy have almost been done away with, Easter used to be celebrated for a whole week beginning with the Sunday before (Palm Sunday) representing the day our Lord entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey. Protestants though more or less usually just observe Easter Sunday and represent the (holy) week as a whole on that day.

 

[seashale76]

This is a very brief and incomplete explanation. This could take up volumes if I gave it all the time it deserves.

In the Orthodox Church, we celebrate Holy Week. Actually, every day of the calendar year, we are commemorating or celebrating something. This past weekend we celebrated Lazarus Saturday, which commemorates the raising of Lazarus by Christ. It is a direct correlation to the ressurection. Then we celebrated Palm Sunday, which is Christ's entry into Jerusalem.

Beginning at sundown on Sunday, we began Holy Week with the Bridegroom Matins of Holy Monday. On Monday morning, we celebrated Divine Liturgy (which is Holy Communion). We also celebrated Bridegroom Matins on Monday evening for Holy Tuesday. Tuesday morning we celebrated Divine Liturgy. On Tuesday evening we celebrated Bridegroom Matins for Holy Wednesday. On Wednesday morning we celebrate Divine Liturgy. Tonight (Wednesday) we will have Bridegroom Matins and a Holy Unction service (annointing with oil). On Thursday morning we commemorate the institution of the Eucharist with Divine Liturgy and foot washing. On Thursday evening for Holy Friday we have the Twelve Passion Gospels service and commemorate Christ's crucifixion. On Holy Friday morning we celebrate the Royal Hours. On Friday evening, for Holy Saturday, we have the Lamentations at the tomb service. In many Orthodox parishes throughout the world, we have an all-night vigil at the tomb and read the Psalms continuously until Liturgy on Saturday morning. On Holy Saturday morning, we celebrate the Liturgy of Saint James and the empty tomb. In some parishes throughout the world, the vigil is continued after Liturgy with the reading of the Book of Acts until Midnight on Sunday. Beginning at Midnight Sunday, we celebrate Matins, the Rush Service, and the Holy Pascha of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ- which is the ultimate celebration of the Resurrection.

Most Wednesdays and Fridays of the calendar year, we fast in remembrance of the betrayal and the crucifixion. Every Sunday we celebrate the Ressurection.

I absolutely cannot express to you enough how awesome, reverent, exciting, ecetera- Pascha is. Nobody celebrates Pascha (what you call Easter) like the Orthodox. You should come and see!

Some hymns from Lent and Holy Week:

Lazarus Saturday
YouTube - Rejoice O Bethany - Byzantine Chant for St. Lazarus - Chanted in English

Palm Sunday
YouTube - By Raising Lazarus-Orthodox Byzantine Chant

Holy Monday, Holy Tuesday, Holy Wednesday:
YouTube - Archangel Voices - Behold, the Bridegroom (English)
Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia.
Behold, the Bridegroom comes at midnight, and blessed is the servant whom He shall find watching, but unworthy is the servant whom He shall find heedless.
Beware, therefore, O my soul, do not be weighted down with sleep, lest you be given up to death, and be shut out of the Kingdom. But rouse yourself crying: Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O God! Through the Theotokos, have mercy on us.

YouTube - I Behold Thy Bridal Chamber - Bridegroom Orthros
I behold Thy bridal chamber richly adorned, O my Savior;
But I have no wedding garment to worthily enter.
Make radiant the garment of my soul,
O Giver of Light, and save me.

Holy Thursday
YouTube - Εξέδυσάν με τά ‎ιμάτιά - They have stripped me of my garments - Pl. 2nd Tone
YouTube - 2007 Holy Thursday 2 Exapostilarion

Holy Friday
YouTube - Archangel Voices - Lamentations, Stasis 3 (English)
YouTube - The Noble Joseph

Holy Saturday
YouTube - Today hell cries out groaning
YouTube - Great and Holy Saturday - Vespers of Great and Holy Saturday - Today Hell Cries out Groaning
YouTube - Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silent Orthodox Cherubic Hymn

Pascha
YouTube - Pascha 1: "For I Shall Arise"
YouTube - Come Receive the Light - Deute Labete Fws
YouTube - Christ Is Risen!
YouTube - Orthodox Easter

 

[HazelWings]

WOW! Seashale, I had no idea there were Easter celebrations that were so elaborate! Thanks for sharing

 

[heron]

Some Protestant churches also celebrate Maundy Thursday, somewhat differently than described above.

They celebrate the Lord's supper/Passover with a Passover meal of bitter herbs etc, and talk about the symbolism of each food item.

Many denominational Protestant churches have a solemn three-hour service representing the time Jesus hung on the cross. They divide it into segments so people can come and go. It becomes a time of repentance and sobering before the color and happiness of Easter morning -- reflecting the humility and forgiveness of the new covenant.

 

[TheGuide]

Hi HazelWings.

Good Friday is a Christian Holiday that celebrates the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death on the cross at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, which is the day Jesus rose from the grave.

Based on the Gospels, the Crucifixion of Jesus was most probably on a Friday.

The Apostle Peter's reference to a "moon of blood" in Acts 2:20, points to Friday, 3 April AD 33.

You cannot get three days and three nights from Friday to Sunday. The actual crucifixion likely occurred on a Wednesday, then the Lord gave up his spirit early Thursday morning and descended into the earth where he remained until early Sunday, which is the day we celebrate his resurrection.

Still, we continue to recognize the Lord's crucifixion on a Friday. Since we celebrate his birth on December 25th each year (when evidence points to a different season) I, as well as many Christians, don't have a problem with it.

 

[HazelWings]

Still, we continue to recognize the Lord's crucifixion on a Friday. Since we celebrate his birth on December 25th each year (when evidence points to a different season) I, as well as many Christians, don't have a problem with it.

I agree

 

[chilehed]

You cannot get three days and three nights from Friday to Sunday. The actual crucifixion likely occurred on a Wednesday, then the Lord gave up his spirit early Thursday morning and descended into the earth where he remained until early Sunday, which is the day we celebrate his resurrection...

Jimmy AKin has a good discussion of this:

In the Bible, parts of time units were frequently counted as wholes. Thus a king might be said to have reigned for two years, even if he reigned for only fourteen months. In the same way, a day and a night does not mean a period of twenty-four hours. It can refer to any portion of a day coupled with any portion of a night. The expression “three days and three nights” could be used as simply a slightly hyperbolic way of referring to “three days.”

As Protestant Bible scholar R. T. France notes: “Three days and three nights was a Jewish idiom to a period covering only two nights” (Matthew, 213).

Similarly, D. A. Carson, another highly esteemed conservative Protestant Bible scholar, explains: “In rabbinical thought a day and a night make an onah, and a part of an onah is as the whole. . . . Thus according to Jewish tradition, ‘three days and three nights’ need mean no more than ‘three days’ or the combination of any part of three separate days” (Expositor’s Bible Commentary, 8:296).

If Jesus was crucified and died Friday afternoon, that would be the first day; at sundown on Friday the second day would begin; then at sundown on Saturday the third day would begin. So Jesus was indeed “raised on the third day” (Matt. 20:19).

http://www.ncregister.com/blog/the-crucifixion-wednesday-or-friday/

 

[seashale76]

@ Chilehed

Yep- which is why after Vespers is celebrated (and the setting of the sun) it is always counted as being the next day already.

 

[heron]

Some holidays are simply set to accommodate workdays. People try to follow the patterns of Passover, since the Lord's Supper was one of the meals during Passover week.

If you want to read more on this, a lot of information is packed into this article/paper:

When was Passover? When was the Crucifixion?

 

[PhilChristian]

Im a christian but i dont believe in good friday.