By Our Reporter
As Easter weekend begins, Christians around the world enter a period of deep reflection, starting with Good Friday — one of the most solemn and meaningful observances in the Christian calendar.
Good Friday, observed this year on April 18, 2025, commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus Christ. It falls on the Friday before Easter Sunday and contrasts the joy of Easter with its quiet tone of mourning and contemplation. According to the Gospels, Jesus was arrested, tried, and sentenced to death by crucifixion. He died on the cross, was buried in a tomb, and rose again three days later — a cornerstone of Christian faith.
Across cultures and denominations, Good Friday is marked by a variety of traditions that reflect its gravity. Many churches hold somber services, often dimming lights and muffling bells. In several communities, processions reenact Christ’s final journey to the cross, with participants carrying wooden crosses or sacred images.
A key devotional practice on Good Friday is the Stations of the Cross — a meditative journey through 14 moments along Jesus’s path to Calvary, each accompanied by scripture readings, prayers, and silence. One such reenactment is set to take place in Chennai, India, where a Christian participant will portray the crucifixion in a public procession on April 18, 2025.
While Lent officially ends on Holy Thursday (also known as Maundy Thursday), many Christians continue fasting and abstaining from certain foods on Good Friday. In particular, Catholics traditionally abstain from flesh meat — such as beef, pork, and poultry — instead consuming fish and non-flesh products like milk, cheese, butter, and eggs.
In addition, many Catholics observe a Good Friday fast, consuming only one full meal and, if needed, two smaller meals that together do not exceed the main one. This form of fasting honors Jesus’s own fasting in the desert and his sacrifice on the cross, according to guidance from The Catholic Telegraph and the Archdiocese of Saint Paul & Minneapolis.
Though Good Friday is marked by solemnity, it ultimately leads to Easter Sunday, a day of celebration and renewal. Easter — one of Christianity’s most significant holidays — commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ, reaffirming the hope and promise at the heart of the Christian faith.
According to Christian doctrine, Jesus’s resurrection on the third day after his crucifixion symbolizes victory over sin and death, offering salvation to all who believe. As Christians around the world reflect on the sacrifice of Good Friday and anticipate the joy of Easter, the season remains a profound journey of faith, hope, and spiritual renewal.
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