On this day, Good Friday, which the ancients called “Great Friday”, when we celebrate the Passion and Death of Jesus, silence, fasting and prayer must mark this moment. Contrary to what many think, the Passion should not be lived in an atmosphere of mourning, but of deep respect and meditation before the death of the Lord, who, when he died, was victorious and brought salvation to all, rising again to eternal life.
It is necessary to maintain an “inner silence” combined with fasting and abstinence from meat. It should be a day of meditation, of contemplation of the love of God, who “gave us His only Son so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). It is a day when entertainment must be suspended, pleasures, even if legitimate, must be avoided.
A valuable practice of piety is to meditate on the painful Passion of the Lord, if possible, before the Tabernacle, in the Church, using the narration given by the four evangelists.
Learn how great sin is
Another possibility would be to use a book for meditation such as “The Passion of Christ according to the surgeon”, in which Dr. Pierre Barbet, French, after studying the Passion for more than twenty years, narrates in detail that of Christ. All of this should lead us to deeply love Jesus Crucified, who emptied himself completely to save us in such a terrible way. This meditation also needs to lead us to associate with the Passion of the Lord, in the sense of making the decision to “spend our lives” for the salvation of others. Giving your life for others, as the Lord gave His life for us. “Love can only be paid for with love”, says Saint John of the Cross.
In the video below, Father Edison explains about Good Friday. Check out:
Meditation on the Passion of the Lord should show us how heinous sin is. It is by contemplating the Lord on the Cross, destroyed, scourged, crowned with thorns, abandoned, slandered, agonizing to the point of death, that we understand how terrible the . It is not without reason that the Catechism says that sin is “the worst reality for the world, for the sinner and for the Church”. This is why Christ came to this world to be sacrificed as the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Only He could offer Divine Justice an oblation of infinite value, which would repair all the sins of all men of all times and places.
3pm celebration
The highlight of Good Friday is the celebration at 3 pm, the time at which Jesus was killed. It is the main ceremony of the day: that of the Lord. It consists of three parts: liturgy of the Word, adoration of the cross and Eucharistic communion. In the readings, we meditate on the Passion of the Lord, narrated by the evangelist Saint John (chap. 18), but also predicted by the prophets who announced the sufferings of the Servant of Yahweh. Isaiah (52,13-53) places before our eyes “the Man of sorrows”, “despised as the last of mortals”, “wounded because of our sins, crushed because of our crimes”. God died for us in human form.
On this day, we can also meditate, in depth, on the “seven words of Christ on the Cross” before His death. It’s like a testament from Him:
“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing”;
“Truly I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise”;
“Woman, behold your son (…) Behold your mother”;
“I am thirsty!”;
“Eli, Eli, lema sabachtani? – My God, My God, why have you abandoned Me?”;
“Everything is finished!”;
“Father, into your hands I commend my Spirit!”
At night, parishes perform reenactments of the Passion of Jesus Christ with the sermon on the descent from the Cross; Then there is the Burial Procession, carrying the bier with the image of the dead Lord. Catholic people like these celebrations, because they put their hearts in union with the Lord’s Passion and sufferings. All of this helps us in the spirituality of this day. There is no way to “pay” the Lord for what He did and suffered for us; however, celebrating his suffering and death with devotion pleases Him and makes us happy. By thus associating ourselves with the Passion of the Lord, we will reap His salvation.
Training Columnists Team
Felipe Aquino
Professor Felipe Aquino is a widower, father of five children. On TV , he presents the program “Escola da Fé” and “Pergunte e Responderemos”, on Radio he presents the program “No Coração da Igreja”. On weekends he holds in-depth meetings throughout Brazil and abroad. He wrote 73 books on Catholic formation for publishers Cléofas, Loyola and. Teacher page: and Twitter: