Friday of Holy Week, Good Friday, is the remembrance of the Saints and Saviors. On this day the Lord Himself offered Himself as a sacrifice for the sin of the world.
All evangelists talk in detail about the Passion of Christ on Good Friday, so the services of this day are full of relevant readings.
Removal of the Shroud
The texts of Good Friday services are masterpieces of Byzantine spiritual poetry, accompanied by soulful melodies.
The Teacher’s disciple agreed on the price, / and sold the Lord for thirty pieces of silver, / betraying Him / to death as a wicked man with a flattering kiss.
The disciple negotiates the price of the Teacher / and for thirty pieces of silver he sold the Lord, / with an insidious kiss, betraying Him / to the wicked to death.
Today he hangs on a tree, Who hung the earth on the waters: He is crowned with thorns, Like the King of angels: He will clothe himself in a false scarlet, Clothing the sky with clouds: He is accepted to be strangled, He who freed Adam in the Jordan: The Bridegroom of the Church was nailed with nails: The Son of the Virgin was pierced with a copy. We worship Your Passion, O Christ. We worship Your Passion, Christ. We worship Your Passion, O Christ. Show us also Your glorious Resurrection.
Today the One who hung the earth on the waters is hanged on a tree, the King of angels is crowned with a crown of thorns, the One who dresses the sky with clouds is dressed in a false scarlet robe, receives slaps in the face. The One who freed Adam in the Jordan, the Church Bridegroom is nailed with nails, pierced with a spear Son of the Virgin. We worship Your Passion, O Christ. We worship Your Passion, O Christ. We worship Your Passion, O Christ. Show us also Your glorious Resurrection.
Dividing My garments for myself and casting lots for My clothing.
Verse: O God, My God, consider Me, where have you forsaken Me?
You have vouchsafed the prudent thief in one hour to heaven, O Lord, and enlighten me with the tree of the cross and save me.
The prudent thief has been vouchsafed to heaven at the same time, O Lord, and enlighten and save me with the tree of the cross.
Thou art two and wicked, O my firstborn son Israel: / Leave me the fountain of living waters, / and make for myself a broken treasure: / Crucify me on the tree, / Ask for Barabbas, and let him go. / The sky was horrified at this, and the sun’s rays were hidden: / but you, Israel, were not put to shame, / but you gave Me over to death. / Leave it to them, Holy Father, / for they do not know what you have done.
/ My firstborn son Israel committed two evil deeds: / he forsook Me, the Fountain of living waters, / and dug for himself a broken well; / He crucified me on the Tree, / and begged Barabbas and freed him. / At this the sky was amazed / and the sun hid its rays. / But you, Israel, were not ashamed, but you put Me to death. / Forgive them, Holy Father, / for they do not know what they have done.
Today it hangs on the Tree
Today he hangs on a tree, Who hung the earth on the waters: He is crowned with thorns, He who is the King of Angels: he dresses in a false scarlet, he clothes the sky with clouds: he is accepted to be strangled, He who freed Adam in the Jordan: the Bridegroom of the Church was nailed with nails: the Son of the Virgin was pierced with a spear. We worship Your Passion, Christ: we worship Your Passion, Christ: we worship Your Passion, Christ, show us Your glorious Resurrection.
“Today hangs on a tree He who hung (established) the earth on the waters; The King of Angels is covered with a crown of thorns; The one who dresses the sky with clouds dresses in clownish purple; He who liberated (from sin) Adam in the Jordan accepts strangulation (slapped); the Bridegroom of the Church is nailed; The Son of the Virgin is pierced by a spear. We worship Your sufferings, Christ, we worship Your sufferings, Christ, we worship Your sufferings, Christ, show us Your all-glorious Resurrection.”
Don't cry for me, Mati(Women's choir. Disc “Time of Fasting and Prayer”)
Do not weep for Me, Mother, Mother, seeing in the tomb, Whom in your womb without seed you conceived the Son: for I will arise and be glorified, and will exalt with glory unceasingly like God, magnifying You with faith and love
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The Prudent Robber(Women's choir. Disc “Time of Fasting and Prayer”)
You have vouchsafed the prudent thief in one hour of heaven, O Lord, and enlighten me with the tree of the cross and save me
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Noble Joseph(Stichera for the kissing of the Shroud) Valaam Choir
“Blessed Joseph, I took down Your Most Pure Body from the tree, entwined it with a clean shroud, and stank(incense) put it in a new tomb, covering it" Gloriously be glorified (Choir of St. John's Monastery)
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Rise up, God(Women’s choir. Disc “Time of Fasting and Prayer”) 2
Arise, O God, judge the earth, for You have inherited in all nations
St. Luka (Voino-Yasenetsky)
The sacrifice was not needed to appease God, but the terrible sacrifice was made by Christ because God was merciful and had mercy on us.
Come, blessed Peter the Apostle, and add your holy word to what we have just heard from the great Apostle John. – He also came, and we hear his holy word: “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, silver or gold, from the futile life handed down to you from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:18-19).
You explained to us, Saint Peter, from what exactly we were redeemed by the Blood of Christ - from the vain life that we inherited from our fathers, from life in worldly vanity, from a life of the soul, not spiritual, in oblivion of the greatest tasks of our life.
Let us now dare to turn to the Lord Jesus Christ Himself and hear from Him the words incomprehensible to the world and hidden: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; And the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world... Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you will not have life in you. He who eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My Flesh is truly food, and My Blood is truly drink. He who eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood abides in Me, and I in him” (John 6:51, 53-56).
This is the deepest and holiest meaning of Christ’s sacrifice: He gave His flesh to be killed and shed His Blood so that in the great sacrament we would eat His Flesh and drink His Blood; so that the molecules of His Body become the molecules of our flesh and His Holy Blood, together with our blood, flows in our veins; so that in this way we become involved in God-manhood and He resurrects us on the last day as His children.
How will we, the poor, repay Him for His immeasurable love and His terrible sacrifice - what? He Himself answered this question for us: “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Let us pour out our love and our tears onto His dead body, which lies before us on the Holy Shroud, and let us direct all the strength of our soul, first and foremost, to keeping His commandments.
Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh
How difficult it is to connect what is happening now and what once was: this glory of the removal of the Shroud and that horror, human horror that gripped all creation: the burial of Christ on that one, great, unique Friday.
But today is Good Friday - a day of great sorrow and deep thought. “Let all human flesh be silent and think of nothing earthly within itself.” On Good Friday, all humanity from Adam to the last earthly being must stand before the shroud with their heads bowed. It was through their sin that death entered the world, their crimes created the Calvary execution. It is scary to recognize oneself as a criminal, it is unbearable to see oneself as the culprit of death - a murderer. And this is a fact! All of us, without exception, are involved in this death. For our salvation, Christ the Son of Man died. By the death of the Son of God on the cross, death is trampled upon and the mercy of God is bestowed on people. Death speaks of an unparalleled deed that God has created -... The coffin, containing the source of life, has become life-giving and carries a silent sermon, and humanity is called to hear it in order to live. The word about the Creator’s love for His creation is heard in this sermon, love for a sinful and ungrateful person. Let us listen, dear ones, to what the silent Savior tells us: “For you, for your salvation, I died. And there is no greater love than that which laid down one’s life for one’s friends. The thought of you, sinner, the desire to save you gave Me the strength to endure the unbearable. You heard how, in My humanity, I grieved and grieved in the Garden of Gethsemane on the eve of suffering. The heart without words cried out to the Heavenly Father: “Let this cup pass by me. But the memory of you, your eternal death, compassion and mercy for God’s perishing creation overcame the fear of temporary inhuman torment. And My will merged with the will of My Father and His love with My love for you, and with this power I overcame the unbearable. “The sins of the whole world are burdened upon Me.” I have taken upon myself your burden, which is too much for you.”
We hear and see words and deeds of love from the tomb of the Savior. God's Love is unchangeable and Its Sun shines on the good and the evil, and salvation is prepared for all who desire salvation. She does not cease even now, but always hopes, endures everything in anticipation of our conversion. But do we all respond with love to this boundless Love? Isn’t there a desire in our time among some people to spit on, trample and even kill her, and among others to simply forget about her? The Lord dispelled the darkness of darkness that prevailed in the world before His coming, illuminated the path to the Kingdom of Heaven, but even today the enemy of God has his part in unbelievers, pagans, and sinners who do not know repentance. Just as during the ministry of Christ, his fellow tribesmen replaced God’s Truths with lies and turned into hypocritical ritualists, so now are we not repeating their errors. In words, “Lord, Lord”! and in life: “have me renounced.” Doesn’t the bitter experience of humanity’s life clearly demonstrate its continued captivity to the atheist – the enemy of the human race? The Lord has given us the joy of eternal life, but we prefer the illusory joys of temporary existence. Christ the Savior, by his feat of self-sacrifice, “deprived of the power of him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,” and the meaning of His sacrifice is the restoration of the Kingdom of God, which is perishing on earth, stolen by the enemy from our ancestors. But it is in our power to choose the path of imaginary freedom, essentially obedience to the enemy of God, or the path of life following Christ. The grace of God is inexhaustible in the Church of God.
Let us, dear ones, live by the Church and in the Church, and let us remember that Christian life is the life of the Holy Spirit. The meaning of our earthly life lies in the acquisition of the grace of the Holy Spirit. And today, and every year, in the silence of Great Heel, the voice of God sounds to humanity: “Save yourself, save yourself, My people!” The Creator recreates His creation into a new life of grace, let us recognize God as our Father, we will feel the need for salvation and mercy, and the Lord, the Source of grace, will have mercy and save us.
Archpriest Valentin Amfitheatrov
Mysterious, incomprehensible hour! The Son of God is filled with internal and external sorrows to the last degree, to the last breath. And do not console, and do not grieve. The joy of Israel, the friend and patron of all the oppressed, forgotten, unfortunate and rejected, has been abandoned by all. He, the Savior, cried out to God the Father: My God! My God! where you have left Me (Matthew 27:46). The healer of broken hearts experienced the pain of strangling, bearing thorns, and scourging. He cried out with a strong cry, with tears, because he saw that it was impossible to remove suffering. But what does this pain mean in comparison with the mental suffering experienced by Jesus Christ at the sight of the heartlessness of the environment around Him? The Divine soul was incurably ill with these sorrows until the moment when it surrendered itself into the hands of God the Father. The betrayal of Judas, the sleep and flight of the disciples, the denial of the beloved, most sincere Peter, the mockery of the servants of the high priest, the senseless cries of the ungrateful mob, ridicule from Herod, mockery from the soldiers, comparison with a robber, unjust condemnation, crucifixion through the streets of a crowded capital, the shame of exposure among the self-righteously ignorant spectators, gloating, abuse of the fellow-crucified villain... Oh, truly our beloved Savior bore upon Himself the punishment and sins of the whole world. But can eternal torment be equal to the incurable disease that the heart of the Lover of Humanity experienced?
The Chief of Life, the Miracle Worker, who brought others back to life, is doomed to death. He dies. Died. He died for our sins!
The Eternal Word of the Father, which created all things and proclaimed to the world boundless mercy towards sinners, fell silent.
The sun of truth, which shone to the world to dispel the deep, dead darkness of perverted deeds and to reveal to everyone the truth of God, bright like light... and like noon, set in the impenetrable darkness of slander, even with reproaches of blasphemy. This is a terrible, incomprehensible hour! Our mortal eyes see one image of the Divine and life-giving body of our Lord Jesus Christ, a silent and lifeless body. He has no form, no glory, no kindness, he is belittled, disgusted, desecrated.
Listen and watch! Behold, the King of kings and Lord of lords has a crown on His head, not precious stones decorated, but woven from thorns. Who wove this painful crown for the Giver of Life? Human pride, insane vanity. Oh, if we really love our Savior, then in meekness, humility and patience we will preserve the law of faith and obedience to His word all the days of our life, while the life of our heart beats within us. If we love our Christ the Savior, if the day of remembrance of Good Friday and the suffering of Jesus seems terrible to us, then do not add the thorns of your sins and iniquities to His painful crown of thorns.
My soul is sorrowful unto death (Matthew 26:38).
St. Ilya Minyatiy
Humanity had to see two great and glorious miracles on earth: first, God descended to earth to take on human nature; the second miracle is that of the God-man ascending to the cross to die on it.
The first was a matter of supreme wisdom and strength, the second - of extreme philanthropy. Therefore, both of them took place under different circumstances. In the first miracle, when God took on the nature of man, all creation triumphed: angels in heaven sang joyful praise, shepherds on earth rejoiced at the saving gospel and the great joy that had taken place, and kings from the east came to worship the newborn Lord with gifts.
In the second miracle, when the God-man died on the cross, as a condemned man in the midst of two thieves, then the world above and below burst into tears, the sky was covered with the deepest darkness, the earth shook from its foundations with trembling, the stones cracked. That night was a bright night, bringing worldwide joy and joy, but this day was gloomy, like a day of sadness and sorrow. That night God showed man all the good he could, and on that day man showed all the iniquity he could do before God.
You have the right to say, God-man and sad Jesus: My soul is sorrowful even to death, for many are Your passions, great is Your sorrow. The suffering is so great that human patience has never endured; sadness is so unbearable that the human heart has never experienced before. And truly, listeners, the more I try to find another similar example in human life, the more I am convinced that His illness in passion and sadness in illness are incomparable. Great was the envy of Cain against his brother, but much greater was the envy of the bishops and scribes against the Savior; and the unrighteous murder of Abel is not comparable to Jesus’ death on the cross.
Great was the patience of Isaac when he was preparing to be sacrificed by Abraham his father; but incomparably more patience is in Jesus, Who was truly betrayed from His Heavenly Father as a sacrifice to the hatred of His enemies. Great were Joseph's misadventures when he was sold by his brothers, slandered by Potiphar's wife and, as a guilty man, was thrown into prison; but much more numerous is the suffering of Jesus, when He was sold by His disciple, accused by the whole host, dragged from court to court as a criminal. Great was the humiliation of David when he was overthrown from the royal throne by his son, when his subjects abandoned him; when his own servants chased him, when he ran barefoot to the Mount of Olives, when they threw stones at him and showered him with curse words.
But what happened to Jesus when the apostles abandoned Him, the soldiers bound Him, crowned them with thorns, burdened them with a cross, when the inhabitants of the whole city saw Him off with blasphemous slander, when He ascended to Golgotha to accept a shameful death between two thieves - all this is not a more sorrowful sight?!
It is impossible not to admit that the illness in Job was great when, having lost his children and estates, he sat on rot, with wounds from head to toe; however, this should be recognized only as a prototype and, as it were, a shadow of those grave sufferings and wounds with which the long-suffering Son of the Ever-Virgin was depressed. The sufferings of those who suffered after Christ and the sufferings of His holy martyrs who imitated Him were not small; however, those sufferings were only physical - amid the suffering, the soul of the martyrs rejoiced; there was death, but there was also honor, there was torment, but there was also a crown. And the passion of Jesus Christ was suffering of both body and soul - suffering without the slightest consolation; His death was one dishonor, His torment was one sorrow, and the sorrow of death. My soul is sorrowful unto death.
Metropolitan Filaret (Voznesensky)
Remember, beloved: when you and I reflect on what the Lord has done for us, we should never forget that it was for our sins that He ended up in the tomb. On the Cross and in the tomb. We nailed Him to the Cross with our stubborn and unrepentant sins, and because of our sins He now lies, silent and motionless, dead in the tomb. And when you worship Him, kiss His Wounds, do it as if you are unrequitedly guilty of the fact that He is wounded, that He is wounded, that He is tormented, spat on, covered in shame and now lies in the tomb.
Remember that we did this: both I and everyone else through our persistent sins and our lack of correction. It’s not for nothing that the Lord himself once, when he felt somehow very painfully the unfaithfulness of the human race, even exclaimed (this is recorded in the Gospel): “O unfaithful and corrupt generation, as long as I will be with you, as long as I will endure you!”* *** This is how hard it was for Him to be with us, but here we, I repeat, were nailed to the Cross by our sins and put in a coffin.
So remember, Christian soul, when you worship the Divine Dead Man lying in the Shroud, when you kiss His Ulcers, do it like an irresponsibly guilty person, because no one except us is to blame for the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ, as the Apostle said, instead of what was set before Him of glory endured this shame and disgrace, and this terrible, shameful and humiliating death on the cross. You and I know that now, after His death, the Cross has become our treasure and shrine, but we nailed Him to the Cross, I repeat, not by soldiers, but by you and me, because if our sins had not been on Him, there would not have been What should he take upon himself, then none of this would have happened. But He went to this terrible superhuman feat. Remember how the Gospel says that He fought until His bloody sweat in the Garden of Gethsemane, during this terrible prayer.
Why was he covered in bloody, terrible sweat? Once upon a time, Saint Demetrius of Rostov in his inspired sermon said, as if addressing the Savior: “Lord! Why are you covered in blood? Who hurt you? There was no Cross, no scourging - none of this had happened yet; Why are you covered in blood?” And he himself answers: “Who wounded? “Love wounded me!” Because the God-man, who loved us sinners so much, knew that if He did not accomplish this terrible feat, then our fate would be forever! - in fiery hell, in terrible, endless and terrible torment, which we cannot even imagine. But He took upon Himself all this terrible burden, this heavy burden of sin, and, thanks to His holy and great Feat, we have the opportunity to hope that we will receive forgiveness of our sins, which were washed away by Him. And then we can hope that He will accept us into the Kingdom of Heaven, just as He accepted the Prudent Thief.
M. E. Saltykov-Shchedrin
Judushka and Anninka were sitting together in the dining room. Not an hour ago, the all-night vigil, accompanied by the reading of the twelve Gospels, ended, and a strong smell of incense could still be heard in the room. The clock struck ten, the household dispersed to the corners, and a deep, concentrated silence settled in the house. Anninka, taking her head in both hands, leaned her elbows on the table and thought; Porfiry Vladimirych sat opposite, silent and sad.
This service always made a deeply amazing impression on Anninka. While still a child, she cried bitterly when the priest said: “And he wove a crown of thorns, placing it on His head, and a reed on His right hand,” and with a sobbing treble she sang along with the sexton: “Glory to Your long-suffering, Lord! glory to You!” And after the all-night vigil, all excited, she ran to the maiden’s room and there, in the thickening twilight (Arina Petrovna did not give candles to the maiden’s room when there was no work), told the slaves “The Passion of the Lord.”
Quiet slave tears flowed, deep slave sighs were heard. The slaves felt in their hearts their Master and Redeemer, they believed that He would rise, truly rise. And Anninka also sensed and believed. Behind the deep night of torture, vile mockery and nodding, for all these poor in spirit, a kingdom of rays and freedom was visible. The old lady herself, Arina Petrovna, usually formidable, became quiet these days, did not grumble, did not reproach Anninka for being an orphan, but stroked her on the head and persuaded her not to worry. But Anninka, even in bed, could not calm down for a long time, shuddered, tossed about, jumped up several times during the night and talked to herself.
Then came the years of study, and then the years of wandering. The first were meaningless, the second were painfully vulgar. But even here, among the ugliness of the acting nomad, Anninka jealously singled out “holy days” and looked for echoes of the past in her soul, which helped her to be touched and sigh like a child.
Now, when life has been clarified in its entirety, down to the last detail, when the past was cursed by itself, and neither repentance nor forgiveness was foreseen in the future, when the source of tenderness has dried up, and with it the tears have dried up - the impression made by the story we have just heard about the sorrowful journey was truly overwhelming. And then, as a child, the deep night was heavy over her, but behind the darkness she still sensed rays. Now - nothing was anticipated, nothing was foreseen: night, eternal, permanent night - and nothing more. Anninka did not sigh, did not worry and, it seems, did not even think about anything, but only fell into a deep stupor.
For his part, Porfiry Vladimirych, with no less accuracy, honored the “holy days” from his youth, but he honored them exclusively from the ritual side, like a true idolater. Every year, on the eve of Good Friday, he invited the priest, listened to the Gospel story, sighed, raised his hands, hit his forehead on the ground, marked on a candle with wax pellets the number of gospels read, and still understood absolutely nothing. And only now, when Anninka awakened the consciousness of the “dead” in him, did he understand for the first time that this legend was talking about some unheard-of untruth that had carried out a bloody judgment on the Truth...
Of course, it would be an exaggeration to say that in connection with this discovery any vital comparisons arose in his soul, but there is no doubt that some kind of turmoil occurred in it, almost bordering on despair. This turmoil was all the more painful the more unconsciously the past that served as its source was lived. There was something terrible in this past, but what exactly it is is impossible for the masses to remember. But you can’t forget either. Something huge, which until now had stood motionless, covered with an impenetrable curtain, and only now moved towards me, threatening to crush me every minute.
If it had really crushed it, that would have been the best; but he is tenacious - perhaps he will crawl out. No, waiting for a solution from the natural course of things is too speculative; we must create a solution ourselves in order to end the unbearable turmoil. There is such a solution, yes. He's been eyeing her for a month now, and now it seems he won't let her go. “On Saturday we will receive communion - we need to go to the grave of our late mother to say goodbye!” – suddenly flashed through his head.
- Let's go, shall we? - he turned to Anninka, telling her out loud about his assumption.
- Perhaps... let's go...
“No, we won’t go, but...” Porfiry Vladimirych began and suddenly broke off, as if he realized that Anninka might interfere.
“But I’m in front of my dead mother... because I tortured her... I!” - wandered meanwhile in his thoughts, and the thirst to “say goodbye” flared up in his heart more and more every minute. But “to say goodbye” not in the way one usually says goodbye, but to fall on the grave and freeze in the cries of mortal agony.
“So you’re saying that Lyubinka died of herself?” – he suddenly asked, apparently in order to cheer himself up.
At first, Anninka didn’t seem to hear her uncle’s question, but obviously it got through to her, because after two or three minutes she herself felt an irresistible need to return to this death, to torment herself with it.
“That’s what she said: drink... you vile one?!” – he asked when she repeated her story in detail.
- Yes... she said.
- Did you stay? didn't you drink?
- Yes... I’m living here...
He stood up and walked up and down the room several times in visible excitement. Finally he approached Anninka and stroked her head.
- Poor you! my poor one! – he said quietly.
At this touch, something unexpected happened within her. At first she was surprised. but gradually her face began to distort, distort, and suddenly a whole stream of hysterical, terrible sobs burst from her chest.
- Uncle! you are kind? tell me, are you kind? – she almost screamed.
In an intermittent voice, amidst tears and sobs, she repeated her question, the same one that she had proposed on the day when, after her “journey,” she finally returned to settle in Golovlevo, and to which he had given such an absurd answer at that time.
- You are kind? Tell! answer! you are kind?
– Did you hear what they read at the all-night vigil today? - he asked when she finally calmed down, - oh, what suffering it was! After all, only through such suffering is it possible... And he forgave! Forgave everyone forever!
He again began to walk around the room with long steps, killing himself, suffering and not feeling how his face was covered with drops of sweat.
- Forgave everyone! - he spoke aloud to himself, - not only those who then gave him otset with bile to drink, but also those who later, now, and henceforth, forever and ever, will bring otset mixed with bile to His lips... Terrible ! oh, this is terrible!
And suddenly, stopping in front of her, he asked:
– Have you... forgiven?
Instead of answering, she rushed to him and hugged him tightly.
- You must forgive me! - he continued, - for everyone... And for himself... and for those who no longer exist... What is this! what happened?! - he exclaimed almost in confusion, looking around, - where... is everyone?..
B. L. Pasternak
B. L. Pasternak
There is still darkness all around.
It's still so early in the world,
That there are no number of stars in the sky,
And each one is as bright as day,
And if the earth could,
She would have slept through Easter
While reading the Psalter.
There is still darkness all around.
It's so early in the world,
That the square lay down for eternity
From the crossroads to the corner,
And until dawn and warmth
Another millennium.
The earth is still naked,
And she has nothing to wear at night
Rock the bells
And echo the singers at will.
And from Holy Thursday
Until Holy Saturday
Water drills the shores
And it creates whirlpools.
And the forest is stripped and uncovered,
And at the Passion of Christ,
How the line of worshipers stands
A crowd of pine trunks.
And in the city, on a small
In space, as if at a meeting,
The trees look naked
In church bars.
And their gaze is filled with horror.
Their concern is understandable.
Gardens emerge from the fences,
The order of the earth is wavering:
They are burying God.
And they see the light at the royal gates,
And a black board, and a row of candles,
Tear-stained faces -
And suddenly towards procession
Comes out with a shroud
And two birches at the gate
We must step aside.
And the procession goes around the yard
Along the edge of the sidewalk
And brings from the street into the porch
Spring, spring conversation
And the air tastes like prosphora
And spring frenzy.
And March scatters snow
There's a crowd of cripples on the porch,
It's as if a Man came out
And he brought it out and opened the ark,
And he gave it all away.
And the singing lasts until dawn,
And, having cried enough,
They come quieter from inside
In vacant lots under street lights
Psalter or Apostle.
But at midnight creation and flesh will fall silent,
Hearing the spring rumor,
It's just clearing weather,
Death can be overcome
With the strength of Sunday.
There is no Liturgy on Good Friday, because on this day the Lord Himself sacrificed Himself, - the Royal Hours are celebrated with special psalms, parimies, reading of the Apostle and GospelI.
8:00 - Royal hours.
There is no Liturgy on Good Friday, because on this day the Lord Himself sacrificed Himself.
14:00 - The rite of removing the Shroud of our Lord Jesus Christ.
16:30 - The rite of burial of our Lord Jesus Christ. Procession. Worship of St. Shroud.
On this day:
(1 Cor 1, 18-2,2 2. Matt. 27, 1-38. Luke 23, 39-43. Matt. 27, 39-54. John 19, 31-37. Matt. 27, 55- 61)
Memories of arrest, trial, beating, desecration, execution and death on the cross Savior.
Good Friday is the scariest day in human history. On this day, it seemed, the ultimate triumph of evil, human envy and ingratitude took place: Christ, the incarnate Creator of the world, the Messiah awaited for so many centuries, was rejected by His people, subjected to terrible mockery, unjustly condemned and betrayed to the most painful and shameful thing that has ever been existed, executions.
stills from the film "The Passion of the Christ"
Then, on a hard, rough wooden cross, after many hours of suffering, the incarnate Son of God died in the flesh. Then, from that cross, the disciples, who had previously been secret, but now, in the face of what had happened, opened up without fear, Joseph and Nicodemus took down the body. It was too late for the funeral: the body was taken to a nearby cave in the Garden of Gethsemane, laid on a slab, as was customary then, wrapped in a shroud, covering the face with a scarf, and the entrance to the cave was blocked with a stone - and that was as if that was all. But there was more darkness and horror around this death than we can imagine. The earth shook, the sun darkened, the whole creation was shaken by the death of the Creator. And for the disciples, for the women who were not afraid to stand at a distance during the crucifixion and dying of the Savior, for the Mother of God this day was darker and more terrible than death itself. Then Friday was the last day. Nothing is visible behind this day, the next day was supposed to be the same as the previous one, and therefore the darkness and gloom and horror of this Friday will never be experienced by anyone, will never be comprehended by anyone as they were for the Virgin Mary and for the disciples of Christ . Endless days began.
I cannot convey anything to you if you don’t feel it yourself, if you yourself don’t stand, if you yourself don’t put aside all everyday concerns and listen and participate. Such a grace-filled thing happens in the church with people: when the Gospel is read, the Lord gives those listening real participation in these great holy events.
I just want to read the release, that is, last words the priest, when he bows to his parishioners, such wonderful words
Term "shroud" appeared in Russian liturgical books in late XVI century. The Shroud is an icon depicting the Savior lying in the tomb. Usually this is a large cloth (piece of fabric) on which the image of the Savior laid in the tomb is written or embroidered.Removal of the Shroud and Funeral Rite - these are the two most important services that take place on Good Friday of Holy Week. Good Friday
The Vespers of Good Friday ends the reading of the book of Job. The service of this day is permeated with a kind of contemplative numbness, a deliberate restraint of feelings and images. We don’t ask for anything, we don’t shed tears from ourselves, we don’t lament about our own. Today everything is about Him, everything is His, everything is by Him.
Long-suffering Job, who sued God for his misfortunes, finally received
In the morning the Royal Hours are read. They are so named because at each Hour there is a…
Vespers begins as usual. However, the chants and lyrics we hear seem to burn. In my opinion, there are no more poignant texts in Orthodox worship than the texts of these days. I remember that when I watched the sensational film “The Passion of the Christ” I caught myself thinking: the intensity of the experience
Given over to execution, Christ suffered a lot before execution. The Savior was mocked, beaten and ridiculed by the Roman soldiers who were to accompany Him to the place of execution. Having placed a crown of thorns on the Lord’s head, its thorns digging into the flesh, and giving Him a heavy cross - an instrument of execution, they set out on the path to Golgotha. Golgotha or the place of execution was a hill to the west of Jerusalem, which could be reached through the city's Gate of Judgment. This is the path the Savior took, eventually passing it for all people.
Such executions sometimes lasted several days. To speed it up, the person was not simply tied to the cross, as in most cases, but was nailed. Forged faceted nails were driven between the radial bones of the arm, next to the wrist. On its way, the nail met a nerve ganglion, through which the nerve endings go to the hand and control it. The nail interrupts this nerve node. In itself, touching an exposed nerve is a terrible pain, but here all these nerves are broken
I saw you off today
To Golgotha, to the cross...
She stood quietly under the fig tree -
There were no places nearby.
I tried to touch you
For You to heal.
I came with the Samaritan woman to the well,
So that you can give me something to drink.
I stretched out my dry soul,
May she come to life.
Waiting with Zacchaeus for dinner,
I paid off all my debts.
And now You have given me wounds
Kiss and cry
With the Virgin Mary and John
Stand on Golgotha.
I buried you today -
You let me...
There is nothing more terrible than Your grave
Among all the graves.
All human flesh fell silent -
The Lord himself is silent.
But hope is like a thin candle
It's burning in my heart.
I'll come here early tomorrow
Carrying aromas,
With myrrh-bearing wives
Not fearing, but loving.
You will illuminate me with light
And the sadness will melt away.
I will follow you at dawn -
I don't feel sorry for myself.
You will teach me humility and holy love,
So that we won't be separated again
Never with you.
(Galina Kremenova, Kherson)
Christ's death on the cross took place according to the Gospel at 9 o'clock (about 3 o'clock in the afternoon, our time). Therefore, in the afternoon in churches, when the troparion is sung: “Blessed Joseph, from the tree I took down Your most pure Body...”, the clergy lift the Shroud (i.e., the image of Christ lying in the tomb) from the Throne, as if from Golgotha, and carry it out her from the altar to the middle of the temple in the presentation of lamps (all those praying stand with lighted candles) and with incense. The shroud is placed on a specially prepared table (tomb), which will be located in the middle of the temple for three (incomplete) days, thereby reminiscent of the three-day stay of Jesus Christ in the tomb.
Then, at the ceremony of removing the Shroud, the canon “Lamentation of the Mother of God” is read. "Woe is me, my child, woe is me, my dear “those are mine,” the Church mournfully exclaims on behalf of the Most Holy Theotokos, contemplating the horror of Passion Days.
The charter prescribes that it should be done privately, so those who did not get into the service, be sure to read this canon, amazing in depth.
“Eternal life, how do you die?” 
- the Ever-Virgin asks His Son and God in bewilderment. Thousands, thousands of mothers can recognize this cry - but Her cry is more terrible than any cry: She buried not only Her Son, but every hope of God’s victory, every hope of eternal life. Many, probably, looked at Christ, many, probably, were ashamed and afraid and did not look into the face of the Mother. With what horror in our souls should we stand in the face of the Mother, Whom we have deprived by murder... Stand before Her face, stand and look into the eyes of the Virgin Mary!.. Listen, listen to this cry! Say: Mother, I am guilty - albeit among others - of the death of Your Son; I am guilty - You intercede. If You forgive, no one will judge us or destroy us... But if You do not forgive, then Your word will be stronger than any word in our defense...
Then the clergy and all those praying bow before the Shroud and kiss the wounds of the Lord depicted on it - His pierced ribs, arms and legs. And in this remaining short time, let us delve into this death with our souls, because all this horror is based on one thing: SIN, and each of us is responsible for this terrible Good Friday. Therefore, when we venerate the sacred Shroud, we will do it with trepidation. He died for you alone: let everyone understand this! - and let us listen to this Cry, the cry of the whole earth, the cry of hope that has been torn, and thank God for the salvation that is given to us so easily and which we pass by so indifferently, while it was given at such a terrible price to God, and the Mother of God, and the disciples .
Every person who truly lives the life of the Church knows the horror and homelessness of this day. This day is also terrible because it mercilessly poses the question to everyone: Where would I be then, on that terrible night? And the answer to it is disappointing: even the apostles, who said that they were ready to die for Christ, and really thought that they would die for Him, all fled, even Peter, the most firm and zealous among them, three times in the face of, if you look at, the most insignificant danger, he denied from your Teacher.
The path to death is terrible for every person, and Jesus was truly a man, but, moreover, for Christ it was especially difficult. We must think about this: it always - or often - seems to us that it was easy for Him to give His life, being God who became man. But our Savior Christ dies as a man: not with His immortal Divinity, but with His human, living, truly human body!”
“The sun saw something it had never seen,” says Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov), “and, unable to bear what it saw, it hid its rays, just as a man closes his eyes at a sight unbearable to him: it was clothed in deep darkness, expressing with darkness a sadness as deep as death is bitter.” . The earth shook and shook under the event that took place on it. The Old Testament Church tore its magnificent veil; so they are tormented and not spared the most precious clothes in case of an inevitable, decisive disaster. And all the people who had gathered to see this spectacle, seeing what was happening, returned, beating their chests.”
Then the temple is plunged into darkness. The sounds of repentance grow and engulf those praying. Everyone is presented in this harsh darkness to the judgment of his conscience, left alone with it, and the voice of the repentant lines either condemns what he has done, or bitterly reproaches him for it. All ages of people stand in the dark before God 
eternal life; freezes, suddenly hearing the sounds of eternal truth, youth. The whole church stands and confesses to God in silence, and outside the window, the reflections of the green lights of the lamps go off into the deep darkness of the sky, as if there, in the firmament, they find their firm presence. This is all that was experienced the day before - the repentant singing, and the darkness of the temple, and the green lights trembling outside the window in the darkness of the sky - all this fills with an unprecedented breadth of experiences. There is no liturgy on Good Friday, since on this day the Lord Himself sacrificed Himself, and the Royal Hours are celebrated. This is a day of especially strict fasting. There is a pious tradition of not eating any food on Good Friday until the end of the rite of removing the Shroud (that is, until approximately three o’clock in the afternoon), and then eating only bread and water. (read 1 Cor 1, 18-2,2 2. Matt. 27, 1-38. Luke 23, 39-43. Matt. 27, 39-54. John 19, 31-37. Matt. 27, 55 -61)
And on Friday evening, Matins of Great Saturday is celebrated (the day according to the church calendar begins in the evening) with the rite of burial of the Shroud. The evening service is of a funeral nature. This is the burial of Christ Himself. Like at a funeral service, everyone in the church stands with lit candles. At the beginning of Matins, the seventeenth kathisma is read - part of the Psalter, which is usually read during funeral services for the dead or at memorial services.
“The original hymn, I will sing a funeral hymn to You; by Your burial I opened the doors of my life, and put death to death and hell,” - this is how the canon of Holy Saturday begins. This is also a cry for the buried Christ, but it sounds more and more powerfully new topic- anticipation of the Resurrection, anticipation of Easter. “Don’t cry for Me, Mother, see me in the grave... I will rise and be glorified,” the choir sings. And they read the Sunday Gospel about the appearance of angels at the burial place of the Crucified Christ, about how the myrrh-bearing women did not find Jesus where he was buried. There is just over a day left until Easter...
Matins of Great Saturday ends with a quiet religious procession with the Shroud and candles. When the procession goes around the temple, everyone sings the funeral song “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us...” And only a few hours separate this procession from the next one, which takes place on Sunday midnight, already Easter.
Crucifixion
The most mournful day of the year has arrived for the Orthodox - Good Friday. It was today, almost two millennia ago, that Jesus Christ was crucified on the Cross, atonement for human sins.
Here brief chronology events from Thursday night to Friday evening, as described by the Orthodox Encyclopedia.
On Thursday, after the Last Supper and Farewell Conversation, the Savior and his disciples went to Gethsemane (the garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives), where they spent part of the night (the disciples in slumber, and Christ in prayer) until the arrival of Judas Iscariot with an armed crowd from the high priests and the elders of Israel. Jesus was arrested and his disciples fled. Christ was taken to the high priest Annas, and then appeared before Caiaphas (before dawn) and the court of the Sanhedrin (in the morning), which sentenced Him to death. At this time, the Apostle Peter, who was following the Teacher and awaiting the outcome of the matter in the courtyard, denied Him three times.
After the verdict was pronounced, Christ was taken to the Roman procurator Pontius Pilate (he was the plenipotentiary representative of the Roman authorities and, among other things, was in charge of capital punishment), who sent Him to the tetrarch Herod Antipas, who ruled in Galilee (for Jesus was from Galilee; thereby Pontius Pilate wanted to transfer Herod responsible for the death of Christ). After being interrogated, mocked and ridiculed by Herod, Jesus was again brought before Pilate. Despite his desire to release Christ and after several unsuccessful attempts to do so, Pontius Pilate, under pressure from the Jewish high priests and the crowd, handed Him over to be crucified.
Upon learning of the verdict, Judas, who repented of his betrayal, committed suicide. After scourging and humiliation in the praetorium, Jesus Christ was taken outside of Jerusalem and crucified by Roman soldiers, who divided His vestments among themselves, on Golgotha (the Place of Execution, where, according to legend, Adam’s skull was buried. Having endured several hours of suffering on the cross, witnessed by many people, Jesus Christ died on the Cross, “and the veil of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook; and the stones were split; and the tombs were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised” (Matthew 27:51-52).
Two of His secret disciples, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, took the Body of Jesus from the Cross, wrapped it in a shroud and buried it “in the tomb” - a small cave not far from Golgotha, covering it with a large stone. Women followers of Christ (myrrh-bearers) were present at the burial. The next day, at the request of the Israeli elders (who were afraid that Jesus' disciples would steal His Body and announce the resurrection), Pontius Pilate ordered Roman soldiers to seal the cave and guard it.
And the next day the Resurrection of Christ took place. The belief that the Son of God, having suffered for people, was resurrected, is the basis and main gospel of Christianity. Therefore, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter (the so-called Easter Triduum) are central to church calendar. The Good Friday service is entirely devoted to the remembrance of events from the end of the Last Supper to the burial of the Most Pure Body of the Lord Jesus Christ (like other days of Holy Week, Good Friday as a liturgical day opens not with Vespers, but with Matins and ends with Compline).
What is a crucifixion? What monstrous torments did Jesus Christ endure for people? This is how the famous Orthodox missionary Protodeacon Andrey Kuraev explains it:
“Cicero called this execution the most terrible of all executions that people have come up with. Its essence is that the human body hangs on the cross in such a way that the fulcrum is in the chest. When a person's arms are raised above shoulder level and he hangs without supporting his legs, the entire weight of the upper half of the body falls on the chest. As a result of this tension, blood begins to flow to the muscles of the pectoral girdle and stagnates there. The muscles gradually begin to stiffen. Then the phenomenon of asphyxia occurs: the pectoral muscles, cramped, compress the chest. The muscles do not allow the diaphragm to expand, the person cannot take air into the lungs and begins to die from suffocation. Such executions sometimes lasted several days. To speed it up, the person was not simply tied to the cross, as in most cases, but was nailed. Forged faceted nails were driven between the radial bones of the arm, next to the wrist. On its way, the nail met a nerve ganglion, through which the nerve endings go to the hand and control it. The nail interrupts this nerve node. In itself, touching an exposed nerve is a terrible pain, but here all these nerves are broken. But not only can he breathe in this position, he has only one way out - he must find some kind of support point in his own body in order to free his chest for breathing. A nailed person has only one possible support point - these are his legs, which are also pierced in the metatarsus. The nail goes between the small bones of the metatarsus. The person should lean on the nails that pierced his legs, straighten his knees and raise his body, thereby relieving the pressure on his chest. Then he can breathe. But since his hands are also nailed, his hand begins to rotate around the nail. To breathe, a person must turn his hand around a nail, which is by no means round and smooth, but completely covered with jagged edges and sharp edges. This movement is accompanied by pain on the verge of shock.
The Gospel says that Christ's suffering lasted about six hours. To speed up the execution, guards or executioners often broke the legs of the crucified person with a sword. The man was losing last point support and quickly became out of breath. The guards who guarded Golgotha on the day of Christ's crucifixion were in a hurry; they needed to finish their terrible task before sunset for the reason that after sunset, Jewish law forbade touching a dead body, and it was impossible to leave these bodies until tomorrow, because a great holiday was approaching - Jewish Passover, and three corpses should not have hung over the city. Therefore, the execution team is in a hurry. And so, St. John specifically notes that the soldiers broke the legs of two thieves crucified with Christ, but did not touch Christ himself, because they saw that He was dead. It is not difficult to notice this on the cross. As soon as a person stops moving up and down endlessly, it means he is not breathing, it means he is dead...
Evangelist Luke reports that when the Roman centurion pierced Jesus' chest with a spear, blood and water poured out of the wound. According to doctors, we're talking about about fluid from the pericardial sac. The spear pierced the chest on the right side, reached the pericardial sac and the heart - this is a professional blow from a soldier who aims at the side of the body that is not blocked by a shield and hits in such a way as to immediately reach the heart. Blood will not flow from an already dead body. The fact that blood and water poured out means that the heart blood mixed with the fluid of the pericardial sac even earlier, even before the last wound. The heart could not stand the torment. Christ died of a broken heart earlier.”
It is worth recalling here that Russian Orthodox Christians are not Monophysites, like the Armenians. In our understanding, Jesus Christ is the God-man. Those. the one who is not only the Lord, but also, like all of us, feels any physical pain of the body. This is the torment Jesus Christ endured while saving us. As the Gospel of John says: “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
This is what the outstanding Russian shepherd said about this event. Orthodox Church Archimandrite John (Peasant):
“The life of Christ, which continues in the world, has led us today to Golgotha, to the empty Cross of the Divine Sufferer, to His tomb. And twenty centuries ago, at this time, only the closest ones remained around His lifeless body, mourning their love and unfulfilled hopes.
The last exclamation of the Dying One on the Cross: “It is accomplished,” was heard by friends and foes. And no one yet understood the cause for which He died. Now, just as the sun is reflected and plays in a drop of dew with the joy of life, so in every Church throughout the entire earth the events of those tragic and saving days are reflected: the Cross of the Lord and the Shroud of Christ are lifted up, they speak of the greatest feat in the history of the world that took place on Calvary.
The Kingdom of God appeared on earth as the Savior and Redeemer and is called the Church of Christ. And today Golgotha would no longer accommodate everyone who brought their love to the Savior’s pierced feet. It is the Lord who fulfills His promise: “When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to Me.” (John 12:32).
We are now, standing at the shroud, already awaiting His Resurrection. Maybe this is why we cannot feel the gracious bitterness of Christ’s passion, nor hold back the forty-day joy of the coming Easter. But today is Good Friday - a day of great sorrow and deep thought. “Let all human flesh be silent and think of nothing earthly within itself.”
On Good Friday, all humanity from Adam to the last earthly being must stand before the shroud with their heads bowed. It was through their sin that death entered the world, their crimes created the Calvary execution. It is scary to recognize oneself as a criminal, it is unbearable to see oneself as the culprit of death - a murderer. And this is a fact! All of us, without exception, are involved in this death...
Let us listen, dear ones, to what the silent Savior tells us: “For you, for your salvation, I died. And there is no greater love than that which laid down one’s life for one’s friends. The thought of you, sinner, the desire to save you gave Me the strength to endure the unbearable. You heard how, in My humanity, I grieved and grieved in the Garden of Gethsemane on the eve of suffering. The heart without words cried out to the Heavenly Father: “Let this cup pass by me.” But the memory of you, your eternal death, compassion and mercy for God’s perishing creation overcame the fear of temporary inhuman torment. And My will merged with the will of My Father and His love with My love for you, and with this power I overcame the unbearable. “The sins of the whole world are burdened upon Me.” I have taken upon myself your burden, which is beyond your strength...
The Lord dispelled the darkness of darkness that prevailed in the world before His coming, illuminated the path to the Kingdom of Heaven, but even today the enemy of God has his part in unbelievers, pagans, and sinners who do not know repentance. Just as during the ministry of Christ, his fellow tribesmen replaced God’s Truths with lies and turned into hypocritical ritualists, so now are we not repeating their errors. In words, “Lord, Lord”! and in life: “have me renounced.”
Doesn't the bitter experience of human life clearly demonstrate its continued captivity to the atheist - the enemy of the human race? The Lord has given us the joy of eternal life, but we prefer the illusory joys of temporary existence. Christ the Savior, by his feat of self-sacrifice, “deprived of the power of him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,” and the meaning of His sacrifice is the restoration of the Kingdom of God, which is perishing on earth, stolen by the enemy from our ancestors. But it is in our power to choose the path of imaginary freedom, essentially obedience to the enemy of God, or the path of life following Christ. The grace of God is inexhaustible in the Church of God. Let us, dear ones, live by the Church and in the Church, and let us remember that Christian life is the life of the Holy Spirit. The meaning of our earthly life lies in the acquisition of the grace of the Holy Spirit. And today, and every year, in the silence of Great Heel, the voice of God sounds to humanity: “Save yourself, save yourself, My people!”Almost everyone knows what Easter is, but less is known what Good Friday is.
This is the last Friday before Easter Sunday (this year this day falls on April 26, 2019). It is also the saddest and, without exaggeration, the most dramatic day of the year.
It was on Friday that Christ was brought to trial, which sentenced him to death. And on the same day the execution took place - the Savior was crucified on the cross. The bitterness of loss, the nagging sense of injustice and at the same time the bright hope that very soon the Lord will rise again...
Good Friday is a whole palette of feelings, and also a unique day in the church calendar, which is associated with many traditions and even prohibitions.
The events of Good Friday will become clear if we rewind time just one day back and plunge into the atmosphere of Thursday (the same Thursday that people called clean).
Let us mentally imagine the Lord's Supper - a kind of farewell evening, which became the last for Christ and his disciples. Of course, none of the 12 apostles had any idea that Jesus would be taken into custody a few hours later.
And only Judas Iscariot was aware of what was happening, because the traitor had already begun his vile game. Having reached an agreement with the Savior’s enemies, he literally sold his teacher for 30 pieces of silver.
By the way, today scientists have made simple calculations that have revealed an amazing fact. Those 30 pieces of silver is today's 6 thousand dollars. This is the amount Judas valued the Lord’s life at.
Of course, Christ knew about the upcoming torment, because he came to earth in order to die and then be resurrected. Through his atoning sacrifice, the Lord was to save all mankind.
But did he know in detail what would happen in a few hours? Hardly. Therefore, immediately after the supper, he went to the Garden of Gethsemane to retire and mentally prepare for the most difficult test. This is what this place looks like today (Jerusalem, Israel).
Meanwhile, Judas was already there with his accomplices. The remaining 11 disciples settled down not far from the Savior. Thursday turned out to be a very busy day, so they fell asleep very quickly - the clean air, sweet silence and sentimental moonlight did their job.
But Christ had no time for sleep. The moment of his suffering and passion is described in great detail in the Bible. The Savior turned his gaze to heaven and simply prayed to God.
Perhaps everyone has heard the expression “the passion of Christ.” It's not just a name famous film, but also part of the true biography of the Savior - events last days his earthly life. Of course, at that moment he was experiencing not carnal, but spiritual passions.
This is what we sometimes call the words “the soul hurts.” Painful thoughts, a feeling of the inevitability of suffering and a terrible, unjust death.
Needless to say, in this mental struggle a person especially needs the support of his loved ones - at least a warm word and a kind look. Obviously, this is exactly what the Lord wanted when he approached his disciples.
But they were already fast asleep, and Christ did not wake them up, did not ask for help, although, of course, he had this to do. every right. It’s just that this was not part of his mission - the Savior does not share his suffering, but bears his cross to the end.
A few hours later he will literally carry a huge wooden cross. Together with the raging crowd, representatives of the authorities and a small number of sympathizers, the Lord reached the place called Golgotha (Matthew, chapter 27).
This is what it looks like today (Jerusalem, Israel).
Screaming enemies, laughing soldiers, whispering conspirators - their discordant cries turned into disgusting chaos, which reverberated with a dull, sad noise in the ears of all those gathered. No one thought about what would happen in just a few minutes. The Lord dies in torment and struggle.
At that very second, the unexpected happened. The sky became dark as if night had suddenly fallen or a total solar eclipse. The stones at the foot of the cross cracked, and the curtain in the local temple was torn exactly in half.
The crowd was seriously scared. Those who just recently shouted and mocked the defenseless man hurried to go home. And many soldiers, timid people, felt not only trembling fear, but also deep respect for the deceased. They believed that Christ was truly the Son of God.
A few more hours later, when Calvary was deserted, a rich man named Joseph came to the cross with the body of Jesus. Whether it’s a coincidence or not, the Savior’s earthly father, Mary’s husband, was called exactly the same. He removed the body, embalmed it, swaddled it and buried it, i.e. placed in a stone tomb.
The next day, the traitors were afraid of the already dead Christ. After all, they remembered his promise that in three days he would rise again. Therefore, they decided to move a heavy stone to the entrance to the tomb, put a seal on it, and in addition set up a guard who should stand at his post around the clock.
No, those people did not know that no security could disrupt God’s plans, that Christ’s mission would be completed only when he was resurrected. So, all that remains is to wait for the fulfillment of this promise.
And this was exactly the case when the promised one waits not for three years, but for three days. After all, on Sunday a great miracle will happen, which a good half of humanity still remembers today. We call it a holiday of hope and good changes, the victory of life over death, spring over winter, the forces of light over the forces of darkness.
But the other hero of this story faced real death, without the prospect of resurrection. Judas Iscariot never got to enjoy his $6,000. After the death of Christ, he was terribly afraid for his transgression, realizing that he had done something terrible.
Taking a wallet with 30 ill-fated pieces of silver, the traitor went to the conspirators to return the money to them. But the life of the innocently murdered man could not be returned. And the attackers had nothing to do with these bloody coins.
Judas became confused and threw the money right in the temple. The silver pieces rolled across the floor, jingling and bouncing alarmingly. This ominous sound seemed to foreshadow an imminent tragedy. Iscariot ran from the city and hanged himself on the first tree he came across.
The legend says that at first he wanted to hang himself on a birch tree, but it got scared and turned white with fear. Then the traitor committed suicide on an aspen tree. Since then, the aspen bush has been trembling in the wind more than others - apparently, it never recovered from what happened...
From this short story it becomes clear that such an event is a real dramatic story, and Good Friday is called so for a reason.
By the way, all the days of the last week before Easter are called passionate (as is the pre-Easter week itself). For example: (aka Clean), Good Friday, Holy Saturday. And these days are usually called great, because they are the most significant and revered in Christianity.
Thus, Good Friday is, without exaggeration, a great, dramatic day, which even today requires a special attitude and respect from us.
On such a day there is no morning service. But during the day at the service at about 3 p.m., when, according to the biblical description, the Savior “gave up the spirit,” i.e. died on the cross, is accomplished.
The Shroud is a rather unusual icon. We are all accustomed to the fact that an image is usually drawn on a hard surface.
However, in the case of the shroud, the image is applied to thick fabric(boards, which is where the name comes from). It depicts Christ laid in a tomb. Several clergymen, dressed in robes, carry out the icon dark shades as a sign of mourning.
Temples are usually darkened, the light comes only from flickering candles. In such an environment, a special mood is truly created, in which many contrasting emotions merge: grief for the deceased, resentment and annoyance for the betrayal of people who have committed a grave sin.
And perhaps a person can experience the feeling of an approaching holiday, which marks the triumph of life over death. After all, only 2 more days will pass, and we will say: “Christ is risen! Truly risen!”
Believers often ask questions about what can and cannot be done on Good Friday before Easter. Indeed, this is a special day of the year, and many will find it useful to learn how to behave appropriately in connection with the events that happened 2000 years ago.
The most important thing to do on Good Friday is not even going to church. After all, many busy people really may not have time left. Moreover, the service with the removal of the shroud is held during the day, when many are still at work. However, everyone can pay tribute to the Lord.
On such a day, it is worth paying attention to reflecting on the feat of Christ and reading the corresponding biblical story (for example, chapter 23 of Luke).
It won’t be superfluous to give alms or do any good deed that will really bring joy to someone. You can visit loved one, with whom we have not communicated for a long time. Reconcile and forgive grievances that have accumulated for a long time and are making themselves felt.
In a word, for modern people there is a certain freedom of choice, which is not denied by church representatives. The main thing is good aspirations, a sincere desire to pay tribute to the Lord.
For a long time in Rus', on such a day they tried to follow very strict rules, for example:
However, it is quite clear that the lifestyle of modern man has changed to such an extent that sometimes we simply have no choice. We need to go to work, dress and feed our children, help our family, do housework, cook dinner, etc. Therefore, everyone acts in accordance with the circumstances.
The corresponding commentary is given by many representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church, for example, Archpriest John Makarenko.
At the same time, it is intuitively clear what exactly should not be done on Good Friday before Easter:
Such behavior in itself is not reprehensible - every person strives for pleasure. But on such a mournful day, a believer cannot rejoice fully.
After all, in these hours 2000 years ago, one of the most tragic events in human history took place. And having fun on Good Friday is almost the same as having a party on the day of a funeral or memorial.
NOTE
Among the questions about what can be done on Good Friday, believers are interested in baking Easter cakes and dyeing boiled eggs.
According to tradition, it is better to do this on Maundy Thursday or at least on Saturday. It is not advisable to do such things on Friday, except in situations of extreme necessity.
Also, one of the important questions is what you can’t eat on Good Friday before Easter. This time is considered the strictest during the entire Lent. Believers should not eat anything or even drink water until the end of the service and the removal of the shroud.
And then, in the evening, you can drink water and eat bread. There is no need to prepare any dishes - all this time the mourning for the crucified Lord continues.
Quite strict rules continue to apply on Saturday. All the better will be the holiday itself - the Holy Resurrection of Christ, when you are allowed to eat any food, and a few glasses of good red wine are also not forbidden.
At the same time, church representatives say that each person should act according to his own feelings. For example, if someone is sick with the stomach or we are talking about a pregnant woman or a nursing mother. Of course, then you shouldn’t refuse food and water, because we are talking about health.
Here is Archpriest Alexander Ilyashenko’s commentary on this matter:
Of course, any significant event is reflected in many faces in the mirror. folk history. After several centuries, it turns out that in people’s memory, a memorable date begins to live its own life. Something similar happened with Good Friday.
For example, in Rus' on this day they often baked baked goods, for example, a bun - in the shape of a cross. It was believed that such bread would never become moldy. And the sailors took the buns with them on long voyages and believed that they would be the ship’s talisman and protect them from maritime disasters.
There was one more custom that each of us can add to our collection of good deeds. Rich people certainly treated their loved ones, acquaintances and even ordinary passersby with baked goods, milk, cottage cheese or eggs.
Another interesting custom is that believers tried to bring 12 burning candles from the church, with which they stood at the service. These candles were carried lit, placed in any part of the house and allowed to burn out to the end. It was believed that throughout the year (12 months) there would be peace and prosperity in the house.
Thus, Good Friday is a tragic day dedicated to remembering the earthly death of Christ. However, the holiday will be very soon, because the Lord will certainly rise again.
And when Easter comes, everyone can sincerely rejoice and enjoy this solemn moment, which occupies a central place in the entire Christian religion.
The most important day of the pre-Easter week, which ends Lent, is rightfully considered the fifth in a row. Great Good Friday for Orthodox Christians is a very important moment, imbued with sadness, as well as reverence and humility. In 2019, Believers celebrate Great Good Friday - Great Friday, as the most mournful day of Holy Week is also called - on April 26. What made him so special about biblical history and why he deserved the above status - you will find out from this article.
Good Friday is dedicated to important events in the earthly life of Jesus Christ that preceded his painful death, namely, condemnation to execution, suffering on the cross, including his very death for humanity. “Following the holy and saving passion of our Lord Jesus Christ” clergy Christian churches performed on Good Good Friday in their churches. Worship on this day includes:
As you can see, the Liturgy is not on this list. It is not actually part of the Good Friday service. Reason: the Lord himself sacrificed himself to humanity on this day. Instead of this type of church service, the priest performs the Royal Hours.
Now let’s take a little more detail about exactly how the service takes place on the most mournful day of Lent - Great Good Friday. At Matins, which, by the way, is traditionally held not on the morning of Good Friday, but on the evening of Maundy Thursday, a representative of the church reads, standing in the middle of the church, “The 12 Gospels of the Holy Passion of Christ.” The authorship of the latter belongs to all four evangelists, and the essence of the sacred books boils down to the story of the suffering of Jesus, where the beginning is what happened at the Last Supper, and the ending is the burial of Christ in the garden of Joseph of Arimathea. The tradition of reading the 12 Passion Gospels comes from the Apostolic tradition. But before the announcement of the gospel of Christ’s Passion, the following is sung: “Glory to Your long-suffering, O Lord.” Throughout the entire story, believers in the temple stand with lit candles.
What happens on Vespers, celebrated on Good Friday? Since it is dedicated to the memory of the removal of Christ’s body from the crucifixion, the same is done by the clergy in the Orthodox church. Representatives of the church sing the troparion “Blessed Joseph, from the tree I will take down Your most pure Body...”, then they lift the Shroud from the Throne (an icon depicting the Savior lying in the tomb) and take it outside the altar. Then they place it in a place of honor in the middle of the temple - a special table, symbolizing the tomb. All those present at the service worship Christ, depicted on the Shroud, and kiss his wounds and ulcers received from blows with a spear at the time of execution. The “body” of the Savior is in the center of the temple for three days, until Easter. In this way, the church reminds the flock of the Messiah's three-day stay in the tomb.
On Good Friday they adhere to the strictest fast according to church regulations. Not only is it forbidden to eat anything, but even drinking water is prohibited. People who are unable to comply with such restrictions adhere to this principle only until the Shroud is removed from the altar. Afterwards they eat only water and bread.
The Bible tells us about the sequence of events that preceded the death of the Son of God on the Cross. It would not be amiss to remember or get acquainted - for some - with this chronology.
So, after praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, Christ found himself in custody. In the morning, Jesus was taken to Pontius Pilate. The Jews did not come with him, since this meant desecration for them, and in such a state they could not eat Passover (this holiday already existed among the Jews at that time). But it must be said that the Savior celebrated the legal Passover the day before his own death, because he longed to be slain along with the Passover lamb assigned for this purpose. Pilate went out to the Jews who had brought Christ and began asking the accusers what Jesus’ guilt was. They were unable to give any intelligible answer to this. Then Pontius sent the Son of God to Herod, but the Savior then again appeared before Pilate. And Pilate, having not found any evidence of Christ’s guilt, turned to the Jews who dreamed of killing Jesus: “Take Him, and crucify Him, and judge Him according to your law.”
However, the Jews could not kill anyone - this is precisely what their law did not allow them to do. Cruel people They planned to crucify Christ with the hands of Pilate. Then Pontius Pilate asked the Savior a question; “Are You the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered that he is the Eternal King, and his kingdom is not of this world. Pilate, not wanting to put Christ to death, announced that he did not find him guilty, and offered to release one of the three prisoners for the sake of Easter - as we remember, in addition to the Messiah, several more robbers were brought to trial. And the Jews, apparently contrary to Pilate’s expectations, showed their mercy not to Jesus, but to the criminal Barabbas.
Pilate gave Christ to the tormentors and gave orders, ordering them to first beat the Savior, then dress him in purple, place a crown of thorns on his head and ridicule him. Everything was done exactly. So they mocked Christ, remembering how he proclaimed himself the King of the Jews. Pilate probably believed that his humiliation of Jesus would be sufficient to satisfy the anger of the Jews. But it was not there. The crowd began to shout to Pontius: “Crucify Him, crucify Him!”, threatening: “If you let Him go, you are not a friend of Caesar.” Fear turned out to be stronger than the truth, and Christ was sentenced to death...
Then there was the difficult journey of Jesus to Golgotha with a heavy cross on his shoulders, and at three o’clock in the afternoon the torturers crucified the Son of God on this same cross at the Place of Execution. On the edges of him they crucified two thieves in the same way, wanting to include the innocent Jesus among the villains. As soon as this happened, the sun suddenly darkened, and this lasted for three hours, and there were other signs. Nevertheless, the tormentors continued to mock the unfortunate man.
When Jesus died, everyone went away. Near the cross only the Mother of God, the disciple of Christ John and Mary of Cleopas remained. Finding Jesus lifeless, one of the tormentors pierced his body with a spear. Water and blood flowed from the wound. The Teacher's body was removed from the cross by the Savior's disciple Joseph from Arimathea. Together with Nicodemus, they wrapped the body in shrouds with incense and placed the remains in Joseph's rock-cut tomb.
This is how the Savior laid down his life for the entire human race on Good Good Friday. Therefore, this day should be spent in deep thought and prayer.
