Good Friday
Background to Good Friday
Good Friday — the Friday before Easter — marks the day on which Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross for the sins of the world. The term Good Friday might be a bit confusing if you associate good with happy. Good Friday isn’t a happy day, but its name is a reminder that humans can only be considered good because of what happened on that day.
Good Friday is a day of mourning and sorrow over the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ and a reminder that the sins of all people made it necessary for him to die in the first place. It’s also a day of gratitude for the supreme sacrifice that he made.
Suggested Activity
Create a Prayer Space
Creating a Sacred Space in your home can help focus on the sense of the sacred
Use:
A Cross
A Cloth
Nails
Something to resemble a crown of thorns
A stone
Suggested Activity
Listening to the Word of God
Isaiah 52:13-53:12 International Standard Version (ISV)
The Suffering Servant
“Look! My servant will prosper, and he will be exalted and lifted up, and will be very high.
Just as many were astonished at you[b]—
so was he marred in his appearance, more than any human,
and his form beyond that of human semblance — so will he startle many nations.
Kings will shut their mouths at him; for what had not been told them they will see, and what they had not heard they will understand…………
Suggested Activity
Reflect on the Word of God
The liturgy of Good Friday helps us in so many ways to understand the meaning and significance of Jesus’ suffering.
Many of the New Testament passages that quote or have clear allusions to Isaiah show us that this passage was been extremely influential in the way that the Apostles understood Jesus' death. It's also pretty clear that this passage was at the core of how Jesus understood his own mission. Jesus saw himself as the fulfilment of this passage from Isaiah. By his sufferings many would be saved.
Suggested Activity
You can pray the Stations of the Cross using this Youtube clip
Suggested Activity
Outreach to others…
Ideas for Outreach:
Try to find out about a local charity that is assisting refugees from Ukraine and other countries. Reach out to the Charity and see if there is a practical way that you and your family can get involved with that community.
Pray for all those fleeing their native countries because of war or natural disasters this Good Friday