What does Good Friday mean?

At the front of a big crowd of people walking through city streets two men carry part of a cross on Good Friday.

Good Friday is the day when Jesus was crucified. Christians often commemorate this day as a day of mourning, of fasting and of sorrow. However, it is named ‘good’ Friday because on this day Jesus suffered and was killed in our place. He bore the weight of sin and its penalty of death. This was so that we could be forgiven and receive eternal life.

The free Passion Plays that take place across the UK every year tell the story of Jesus’s life, death and resurrection, and focus on the events of Good Friday,

John 3:16 

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life”.

Matthew 26:39

‘And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”’

Romans 5:6

‘For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly’.

Philippians 2:8

‘And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross’.

Two men in black drag Jesus to the cross while a crowd watches. Two other men are on crosses on either side of him during the Stafford Passion Play.

Is your Passion Play Anti-Semitic?

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Jesus in a white robe stands with the whole cast and crew of Brighton Passion Play after the free performance on Good Friday.

Further reading about Passion Plays

Here are two book recommendations if you are thinking of...