Today is Good Friday — the day commemorating the Crucifixion of Christ. The question of whether to observe Jesus’ death and Resurrection created a major controversy in early Christianity. Until the 4th century, Jesus’ Last Supper, death and His Resurrection were observed in one single commemoration on the evening before Easter. Since then, those three events have been observed separately with Easter, as the commemoration of Jesus’ Resurrection, being considered the pivotal event.
The Mass of the Presanctified is observed on Good Friday. Its name is derived from the fact there is no consecration of the sacred elements of bread and wine — Communion is ministered from the Reserved Sacrament (consecrated elements retained from previous celebrations.)
There are no other Masses until Easter.
Why this day is called “good” has alway puzzled me. About the best explanation I’ve heard is from Randy Alcorn — “What is good about Good Friday? Why isn’t it called Bad Friday? Because out of the appallingly bad came what was inexpressible good. And the good trumps the bad, because though the bad was temporary, the good is eternal.”
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