Good Friday is a unique and solemn day for Christians, with ancient prayers and fervent processions

Corpus Christi Catholic Church youth group members push a float with Jesus during a rehearsal for their Good Friday procession Monday, March 23, 2026, in Miami, Fla. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier) 2026-04-01T11:07:19Z MIAMI (AP) — Good Friday is a unique — and uniquely solemn — day in the Christian calendar.

It commemorates the crucifixion and death of Jesus, ahead of what’s a central tenet of faith for believers — his resurrection two days later on Easter Sunday, according to the Gospels.

This year, it falls on April 3 for Catholics and Protestants, and April 10 for Orthodox Christians.

Across Christian denominations, Good Friday services are unlike those on most other days.

They often include centuries-old, once-a-year traditions both during the liturgy and out in the streets, where elaborate processions and other rituals of fervent popular piety are held.

While Catholics gather, it’s the only day without an actual Mass, because there’s no sacrament of the Eucharist, which is the transformation of bread and wine into Jesus’ body and blood according to the church.

Orthodox Christians don’t celebrate the Eucharist either on what they call Great and Holy Friday.

Most mainline Protestant denominations and Evangelicals also hold unique services, like the Lutheran devotion focused on the biblical accounts of Jesus’ last words on the cross, though they are not as strict on fasting as Catholics and Orthodox Christians.

Church services tend to last more than an hour, usually starting at 3 p.m., when tradition says Jesus died.

But even though it’s not a day of obligation, and it’s a workday in the United States, churches tend to be packed. “The time leading up to Good Friday is a big reflection on sacrifice — what he did for me and what I am doing in return,” said Manuel León, 22.

A member of Miami’s Corpus Christi Catholic Church youth group, he will carry a grimly realistic statue of Jesus crucified in procession through a hip central neighborhood on Good Friday. “Pushing that statue from the back and seeing how torn up he is, what he did for us really becomes real,” León added.

Ancient forms of liturgy mark Good Friday Some of the most ancient liturgical practices define Good Friday service for Catholics, said the Rev.

John Baldovin, a professor of historical and liturgical theology at Boston College. “The most solemn days tend to retain the oldest ceremonies,” he added, including as example the fact that the priests and ministers prostrate themselves i

原文链接: AP News