GOOD FRIDAY

What is Good Friday?

Good Friday commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus. It is the most solemn day in the Christian calendar. The dates of Good Friday, which vary each year, occur between March 20th and April 23rd. It falls on the last Friday before Easter. It is the pinnacle of the Holy Week. All Christians observe this day with great humility and reverence. 

History of Good Friday

As early as the first century, the Church set aside every Friday as a special day of prayer and fasting. It was not until the fourth century, however, that the Church began observing the Friday before Easter as the day associated with the crucifixion of Christ. First called Holy or Great Friday by the Greek Church, the name "Good Friday" was adopted by the Roman Church around the sixth or seventh century. 

Good Friday Origins

There are two possible origins for the name "Good Friday". The first may have come from the Gallican Church in Gaul (modern-day France and Germany). The name "Gute Freitag" is Germanic in origin and literally means "good" or "holy" Friday. The second possibility is a variation on the name "God's Friday," where the word "good" was used to replace the word "God," which was often viewed as too holy to be spoken aloud.

Good Friday Traditions

Good Friday rituals and traditions are distinct from every other Church observances. They add to Good Friday's significance. The ceremony is somber, with priests and deacons dressing in black or purple vestments. The pulpit and the altar are bare; no candles are lit. The purpose behind the solemn presentation is to create an awareness of grief over the sacrifice of God's only begotten Son. Today, many churches hold special services on Good Friday evening to commemorate this important day.

(Information Cited From: http://www.churchyear.net/goodfriday.html )

CATHOLICS, CONFIRMATIONS AND CHURCHES, OH MY!

TONY WALKER

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I'd like to thank The Lounge for posting my Lunch Time Poll about unions.

This is an important topic to me. Unions & the fate of working class America is very scary. If you haven't seen the post go check it out. Please comment & keep the communication going.

One way to fight & help each other is communicating.

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On to today's post...

A tremendous honor was bestowed upon me this week. I've been asked to sponsor someone who is getting their Confirmation in June.

The confirmee (I know that's not a word!) is one of my oldest & closest friends. He is like a brother to me. When we were kids his mother had some issues with the Church which led to her pulling her sons out of religious instructions so my friend was never confirmed. He has decided to do it now because his kids have been going through religious instructions & he feels like a hypocrite telling them they must do this when he hasn't.

I grew up in a very strict Catholic household. As an adult I've had some issues with the Catholic Church. The whole Priest sex abuse scandal rocked me pretty good since a Priest attempted to play with me when I was 14. I lived with the guilt of knocking a Priest down for years even though that was my only option to get away. Thank God I did. Anyway, since the scandal came to light I decided not to be a practicing Catholic anymore. I still have Catholicism based beliefs, I just don't support the Catholic Church. So with that in mind I would never do what my friend is doing but of course I support him 1000% & will be there for him on his big day.

My question is this. Do you think getting confirmed for your kids sake is a good enough reason to get confirmed?

Also, getting off topic a little... what do you think of Churches whether it's Catholic or something else? There just seems to be so many different types of Churches these days. I don't remember so many when I was a kid. Do you think so many different denominations are needed? If so, why?

I look forward to your comments here.