Good Friday

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Lent: April 6th

Good Friday Old Calendar: Good Friday

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"It is accomplished; and bowing his head he gave up his spirit."

Today the whole Church mourns the death of our Savior. This is traditionally a day of sadness, spent in fasting and prayer. The title for this day varies in different parts of the world: "Holy Friday" for Latin nations, Slavs and Hungarians call it "Great Friday," in Germany it is "Friday of Mourning," and in Norway, it is "Long Friday." Some view the term "Good Friday" (used in English and Dutch) as a corruption of the term "God's Friday." This is another obligatory day of fasting and abstinence. In Ireland, they practice the "black fast," which is to consume nothing but black tea and water.
Stational Church

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Liturgy
According to the Church's ancient tradition, the sacraments are not celebrated on Good Friday nor Holy Saturday. "Celebration of the Lord's Passion," traditionally known as the "Mass of the Presanctified," (although it is not a mass) is usually celebrated around three o'clock in the afternoon, or later, depending on the needs of the parish.

The altar is completely bare, with no cloths, candles nor cross. The service is divided into three parts: Liturgy of the Word, Veneration of the Cross and Holy Communion. The priest and deacons wear red or black vestments. The liturgy starts with the priests and deacons going to the altar in silence and prostrating themselves for a few moments in silent prayer, then an introductory prayer is prayed.
In part one, the Liturgy of the Word, we hear the most famous of the Suffering Servant passages from Isaiah (52:13-53:12), a pre-figurement of Christ on Good Friday. Psalm 30 is the Responsorial Psalm "Father, I put my life in your hands." The Second Reading, or Epistle, is from the letter to the Hebrews, 4:14-16; 5:7-9. The Gospel Reading is the Passion of St. John.
The General Intercessions conclude the Liturgy of the Word. The ten intercessions cover these areas:

• For the Church
• For the Pope
• For the clergy and laity of the Church
• For those preparing for baptism
• For the unity of Christians
• For the Jewish people
• For those who do not believe in Christ
• For those who do not believe in God
• For all in public office
• For those in special need

For more information about these intercessions please see Prayers for the Prisoners from the Catholic Culture Library.
Part two is the Veneration of the Cross. A cross, either veiled or unveiled, is processed through the Church, and then venerated by the congregation. We joyfully venerate and kiss the wooden cross "on which hung the Savior of the world." During this time the "Reproaches" are usually sung or recited.
Part three, Holy Communion, concludes the Celebration of the Lord's Passion. The altar is covered with a cloth and the ciboriums containing the Blessed Sacrament are brought to the altar from the place of reposition. The Our Father and the Ecce Agnus Dei ("This is the Lamb of God") are recited. The congregation receives Holy Communion, there is a "Prayer After Communion," and then a "Prayer Over the People," and everyone departs in silence.

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Activities
This is a day of mourning. We should try to take time off from work and school to participate in the devotions and liturgy of the day as much as possible. In addition, we should refrain from extraneous conversation. Some families leave the curtains drawn, and maintain silence during the 3 hours (noon — 3p.m.), and keep from loud conversation or activities throughout the remainder of the day. We should also restrict ourselves from any TV, music or computer—these are all types of technology that can distract us from the spirit of the day.
If some members of the family cannot attend all the services, a little home altar can be set up, by draping a black or purple cloth over a small table or dresser and placing a crucifix and candles on it. The family then can gather during the three hours, praying different devotions like the rosary, Stations of the Cross, the Divine Mercy devotions, and meditative reading and prayers on the passion of Christ.
Although throughout Lent we have tried to mortify ourselves, it is appropriate to try some practicing extra mortifications today. These can be very simple, such as eating less at the small meals of fasting, or eating standing up. Some people just eat bread and soup, or just bread and water while standing at the table.

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The Station today is at the church of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem which contains parts of the true Cross and one of the nails of the Crucifixion. The Church commemorates the redemption of the world with the reading of the Passion, the Collects in which the Church prays with confidence for the salvation of all men, the veneration of the Cross and the reception of Our Lord reserved in the Blessed S

Chiara Lubich

----- Forwarded Message -----
From: Sr Maria McGuire ...
Sent: Thursday, 5 April 2012, 14:52
Subject: FW: Four Words

 

 

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From: focolareglasgow [mailto:focolareglasgow@talktalk.net]
Sent: 04 April 2012 22:38
To: focolareglasgow
Subject: Four Words

 

Living with you these wonderful mysteries of Eastertime.  In the writing below Chiara gives us a ‘map’ to navigate through the days ahead. With all our love and gratitude for the miracles we witness together day by day, Liz and all

 

 

Castel Gandolfo, April 20, 2000

  “Four Words”

Dearest everyone,

Today is Holy Thursday!

Our conference call in April coincides with this special day for all Christians. And we who feel that it truly is a very special day because of the spirituality that flowed from the charism given to us by the Holy Spirit, cannot help but pause for a moment to meditate, to contemplate, to seek to relive the mysteries it unfolds together with those of Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday.

 

To begin with, we can describe each of these days with one word which expresses, or I’d like to say, which has cried out for more than 50 years through the Movement what we should be: Love on Holy Thursday; Jesus forsaken on Good Friday; Mary on Holy Saturday; the risen Lord on Easter Sunday.

           

Today, then: Love. Holy Thursday, this day on which we have often experienced throughout the years the sweetness of a special intimacy with God, reminds us of the abundance of love that heaven poured out over the earth.

Love, first of all, is the Eucharist given to us on this day. 

Love is the priesthood, which is a service of love and which gives us, among other things, the possibility of having the Eucharist.        

Love is unity, the effect of love, which Jesus, then as today, implored from the Father: “That they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you” (cf. Jn. 17:21).

Love is the new commandment which he revealed on this day before dying. “As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another'' (Jn. 13:34-35). It is a commandment which enables us to live our life here on earth modeled on that of the Holy Trinity:

 

Tomorrow: Good Friday. Only one name: Jesus forsaken.

I’ve recently completed a book on him entitled: The Cry. I dedicated it to him with the intention of writing it also on your behalf, on behalf of all the Work of Mary “as – this is the dedication – a love letter to Jesus forsaken”.

In it I speak of him who, in the only life given to us by God, one day, one precise day, different for each one, he called us to follow him, to give ourselves to him.

It’s clear then – and I say so – that what I want to say in those pages cannot be like a talk, however confidential, warm, and deeply felt; but rather, a song, a hymn of joy and especially of gratitude toward him.

“He had given everything: the life he lived beside Mary, in discomfort and obedience. Three years of preaching, three hours on the cross, from which he forgave his executioners, opened Paradise to the good thief, and gave his Mother to us. Only his divinity remained.

“His union with the Father, the most sweet and ineffable union with the One who had made him so powerful on earth as the Son of God and so majestic on the cross, his awareness of God’s presence had to sink into the deepest recesses of his soul so as not to be felt any longer. It had to separate him in some way from the One whom he had said was one with him”, and make him cry out: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mt. 27:46).

 

The day after tomorrow: Holy Saturday. Mary is alone. Alone with her dead son-God. Is it an insurmountable abyss of anguish, an infinite agony? Yes, but she remains standing, thus becoming a sublime example, a masterpiece of virtue. She hopes and believes. During his lifetime Jesus had announced his death, but also his resurrection. Others may have forgotten his words, but she never forgot them. She kept these words in her heart, along with others, and meditated on them (cf. Lk. 2:51).

Therefore, she doesn’t give in to suffering: she waits.

 

And finally: Easter Sunday.

It’s the triumph of the risen Jesus whom we know and relive in our own small way after having embraced him forsaken, or when truly united in his name, we experience the effects of his life, the fruits of his Spirit.

The risen Lord must always be present and alive in us during this year 2000. The world wants to see not only people who believe and who love in some way, but people who are authentic witnesses, people who can truthfully say, as Magdalene said to the apostles after having seen him near the tomb, words which we know but which are always new: “We’ve seen him!” Yes, we’ve discovered him in the light with which he enlightened us; we’ve touched him in the peace with which he filled us; we’ve heard his voice in the depths of our heart; we’ve enjoyed his incomparable joy.”

 

Dearest everyone, let us keep these four words in mind during these days: love, Jesus forsaken, Mary, the risen Lord. And to live them out in a concrete way, nothing could be better than to continue living: “What hurts me is mine” in relation to our brothers and sisters who are suffering, by loving them; in our personal sufferings by embracing Jesus forsaken; in the trials of the Movement, which is a mystical presence of Mary in the Church and in the world, which we must overcome; in the effort to never deprive ourselves of him, the risen Lord, in us and in our midst.

“What hurts me is mine!” In living this we are living everything.

 

                                                                                    Chiara

 

 Chiara Lubich (22 January 1920 – 14 March 2008) was an Italian Catholic activist and leader and foundress of the Focolare Movement.

Death

She died in Rocca di Papa in her native Italy, aged 88, on 14 March 2008.^[9]

Chiara Lubich
Born	Silvia Lubich 22 January 1920 Trento, Italy
Died	14 March 2008 (aged 88) Rocca di Papa, Italy
Nationality	Italian