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Who Made Good Friday A Holiday?

 


Unlike Easter Sunday which caused fights between Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox due to different calendars, we do not know who instituted Good Friday as a holiday, but we know the earliest date of the holy day is 100 A.D. according to some sources (The Gospel of John was written in 90 A.D.), and that by the 4th Century it was a fast day associated with the remembrance of Jesus’ Crucifixion, “Good Friday is the English designation of Friday in Holy Week . . . (the day) on which the Church keeps the anniversary of the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

From the earliest times the Christians kept every Friday as a feast day; and the obvious reasons for those usages explain why Easter is the Sunday par excellence, and why the Friday which marks the anniversary of Christ's death came to be called  Good Friday. 

Some say the term Good Friday is from Gottes Freitag; others maintain that it is from the German Gute Freitag, and not specially English." (The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume VI, 1909). It is interesting the Catholics mention that early Christians celebrated every Friday, probably to keep Jesus’ words, “And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you,” (Luke 22:19-20) and the words of His apostle, “For every time you eat this bread and drink this cup, you are announcing the Lord’s death until he comes again.” (1 Corinthians 11:26). By observing The Communion (Eucharist for Catholics) we are proclaiming Jesus’ death till He comes again as well as obeying His words  “to do this in remembrance of me.” It makes sense then that a holy day to mark the anniversary of Jesus’ death on the cross would be instituted just as Easter Sunday commemorate His Resurrection and Christmas His Birth. 


The earliest date of Good Friday’s observance being 100 A.D. is only ten years after The Apostle John wrote His gospel account in 90 A.D. which makes one inclined to believe that The Apostle was alive when Good Friday was institute since the Apostle John died sometime after 98 A.D. John was the youngest of Jesus’ Disciples during 30-33 A.D. Thus it is possible John may have instituted Good Friday since He saw Jesus’ Crucifixion, “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.” (John 19:25-27). He would have known the particulars of Good Friday having been there and could have influenced the tradition that has been passes down to us. 


There are Protestants brother and sisters who do not observe Good Friday via services. I  believe we should, not because Catholics do but rather to keep the words of Jesus (Luke 22:19-20) and Paul (1 Corinthians 11:26); to do it in remembrance of Our Lord’s Death and proclaim His death till He comes again.I think we should observe Communion every week as The Early Church did too, but at the very least we Protestants can get to Good Friday each year. We celebrate Easter, what is so hard about also observing Good Friday? Amen. 


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