Good Friday
Hierarchy classification:
Alternative term/s
- Good Fridays
- Great Friday
- Holy and Great Friday
- Holy Friday
- Long Friday
- Sorrowful Friday
Anotations
Scope note:
Refers to the Friday before Easter during Holy Week. On this day the crucifixion of Jesus Christ is commemorated. It is a day of penance in liturgical churches. Good Friday and the following day (Holy Saturday) are the only days of the years on which mass is not celebrated in the Roman Catholic Church. The rite includes the veneration of the cross and communion with hosts consecrated on Maundy Thursday. Good Friday is kept as a feast rather than as a fast in some Protestant churches and is considered a special celebration of the Lord's Supper. The Three Hours Service is the main service of Good Friday in many denominations. The day is known as Great Friday in Eastern Orthodox churches. Some denominations come together to celebrate Good Friday as an expression of Christian unity.