Understanding the Day
Season
Passiontide
Week
Week 2 of Passiontide
Rank
Weekday
Good Friday (Feria VI in Parasceve) falls in Passiontide, the final days of Lent when the Church focuses on Christ’s suffering and death. As a “Greater Privileged Feria,” this is a simple weekday observance that nonetheless has special importance: the liturgy is more solemn than an ordinary weekday, and the Church’s prayers, Scripture readings, and devotions center on the Passion narrative and the Cross. In the traditional Divino Afflatu calendar context, this Friday is the principal commemoration of Jesus’ crucifixion; it does not belong to an octave or have a vigil attached here, so attention is fixed on the events of the day itself.
Collect (Daily Prayer)
After these Collects, the Ministers lay aside their cope and chasubles and stand at the sedilia. The Deacon goes with the Acolytes to the Sacristy, whence they return in procession with lighted candles carrying the veiled cross (which should be as large as possible), the Celebrant and Subdeacon coming forward to meet them before the center of the altar. The Celebrant carries the Cross (with assistance, if necessary) to the Epistle side of the sanctuary and, turning towards the people, he uncovers the upper portion of the Cross and intones the verse:
℣. Behold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the Saviour of the world.
℟. Come, let us adore.
℣. Behold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the Saviour of the world.
℟. Come, let us adore.
℣. Behold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the Saviour of the world.
℟. Come, let us adore.
When the choir sings these words, all kneel, except the celebrant. The priest then advances to the front corner, and uncovers the right arm; elevating the Crucifix a little, he sings on a higher tone : Ecce lignum Crucis. Then at the middle of the altar the Celebrant uncovers the whole Cross, and, lifting it up, begins still higher, the ministers and choir continuing as before.
Two assistants take the unveiled Cross to the center of the sanctuary, where they stand facing the people and supporting the Cross upright by the arms; the acolytes place their candles at either side of the Cross and themselves kneel down facing the Cross throughout the adoration that follows. The celebrant and his ministers and assistants take off their shoes, and each in turn approaches, genuflecting thrice, and kisses the feet of the Crucifix. The Cross, still supported by the two assistants and candles and acolytes, is then placed more conveniently for the adoration of the faithful; these should form a procession past the Cross, men first, women afterwards, and after one simple genuflection devoutly kiss the feet of the Crucified. Meanwhile two choirs should be singing the Improperia or Reproaches._
Improperia
Two cantors sing the following:
℣. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. Because I led thee out of the land of Egypt, thou hast prepared a cross for thy Saviour.
Two cantors interchangeably
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
Two cantors:
℣. Because I led thee out through the desert forty years: and fed thee with manna, and brought thee into a land exceeding good, thou hast prepared a Cross for thy Saviour.
Two cantors interchangeably
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
Two cantors:
℣. What more ought I have done for thee, that I have not done? I planted thee, indeed, My most beautiful vineyard: and thou hast become exceeding bitter to Me: for in My thirst thou gavest Me vinegar to drink: and with a lance thou hast pierced the side of thy Saviour.
Two cantors interchangeably
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
Two cantors interchangeably
℣. For thy sake I scourged Egypt with its first-born: and thou hast scourged Me and delivered Me up.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I led thee out of Egypt having drowned Pharao in the Red Sea: and thou hast delivered Me to the chief priests.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I opened the sea before thee: and thou with a spear hast opened My side.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I went before thee in a pillar of cloud: and thou hast led Me to the judgement hall of Pilate.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I fed thee with manna in the desert; and thou hast beaten Me with whips and scourges.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I gave thee the water of salvation from the rock to drink: and thou hast given Me gall and vinegar.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. For thy sake I struck the kings of the Chanaanites: and thou hast struck My head with a reed.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I gave thee a royal sceptre: and thou hast given to My head a crown of thorns.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I exalted thee with great strength: and thou hast hanged Me on the gibbet of the Cross.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
Antiphone
Ant. We adore Thy Cross, O Lord: and we praise and glorify Thy holy Resurrection: for behold by the wood of the Cross joy has come into the whole world.
Ps. 66:2
May God have mercy on us, and bless us: may He cause the light of His countenance to shine upon us, and have mercy on us.
Ant. We adore Thy Cross, O Lord: and we praise and glorify Thy holy Resurrection: for behold by the wood of the Cross joy has come into the whole world.
Crux fidelis
Ant. Faithful Cross! above all other, One and only noble Tree! None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit thy peer may be; Sweetest wood and sweetest iron, Sweetest weight is hung on thee.
℣. Sing, my tongue, the glorious battle! With completed victory rife! And above the Cross's trophy Tell the triumph of the strife: How the world's Redeemer conquer'd By the offering of His life.
Ant. Faithful Cross! above all other, One and only noble Tree! None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit thy peer may be.
℣. God, his Maker, sorely grieving, That the first-made Adam fell, When he ate the fruit of sorrow, Whose reward was death and hell, Noted then this Wood the ruin, Of the ancient wood to quell.
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron, Sweetest weight is hung on thee.
℣. For this work of our salvation Needs must have its order so, And the manifold deceiver's Art by art would overthrow, And from thence would bring the healing, Whence the insult of the foe.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. Wherefore when the appointed fullness Of the holy time was come, He was sent who maketh all things From th' eternal Father's home, And proceeded, God Incarnate, Offspring of the Virgin's womb.
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron
℣. Weeps the Infant in the manger That in Bethlehem's stable stands: And His Limbs the Virgin Mother Doth compose in swaddling bands, Meetly thus in linen folding Of her God the feet and hands.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. Thirty years among us dwelling, His appointed time fulfilled, Born for this, He meets His Passion, For that this He freely willed: On the Cross the Lamb is lifted, Where His life-blood shall be spilled.
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron
℣. He endured the nails, the spitting, Vinegar, and spear, and reed; From that holy Body broken Blood and water forth proceed: Earth, and stars, and sky, and ocean, By that flood from stain are freed.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. Bend thy boughs, O Tree of glory! Thy relaxing sinews bend; For awhile the ancient rigor, That thy birth bestowed, suspend: And the King of heavenly beauty On thy bosom gently tend!
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron
℣. Thou alone wast counted worthy This world's ransom to uphold; For a shipwrecked race preparing Harbor, like the Ark of old; With the sacred Blood anointed From the smitten Lamb that rolled.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. To the Trinity be glory Everlasting, as is meet: Equal to the Father, equal To the Son, and Paraclete: Trinal Unity, Whose praises All created things repeat.
Amen.
Ant. Sweetest wood
The Cross is placed at the center of the altar so that it can be seen by all in the church, and the acolytes' candles are placed on either side. The Sacred Ministers change into purple vestments, but only the Deacon goest to the Altar of Repose with the acolytes. There he withdraws the Ciborium from the tabernacle without incensation, and returns to the High Altar, each acolyte carrying one of the lighted candles from the Altar of Repose. Meanwhile everyone else kneels, and the choir sings these antiphons:
We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee, because by Thy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Through a tree we were enslaved, and through a holy Cross have we been set free: the fruit of a tree led us astray, the Son of God bought us back.
Saviour of the world, do Thou save us, do Thou, who through Thy Cross and Blood didst redeem us, do Thou help us, our God, we beseech Thee.
℣. Behold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the Saviour of the world.
℟. Come, let us adore.
℣. Behold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the Saviour of the world.
℟. Come, let us adore.
℣. Behold the wood of the Cross, on which hung the Saviour of the world.
℟. Come, let us adore.
When the choir sings these words, all kneel, except the celebrant. The priest then advances to the front corner, and uncovers the right arm; elevating the Crucifix a little, he sings on a higher tone : Ecce lignum Crucis. Then at the middle of the altar the Celebrant uncovers the whole Cross, and, lifting it up, begins still higher, the ministers and choir continuing as before.
Two assistants take the unveiled Cross to the center of the sanctuary, where they stand facing the people and supporting the Cross upright by the arms; the acolytes place their candles at either side of the Cross and themselves kneel down facing the Cross throughout the adoration that follows. The celebrant and his ministers and assistants take off their shoes, and each in turn approaches, genuflecting thrice, and kisses the feet of the Crucifix. The Cross, still supported by the two assistants and candles and acolytes, is then placed more conveniently for the adoration of the faithful; these should form a procession past the Cross, men first, women afterwards, and after one simple genuflection devoutly kiss the feet of the Crucified. Meanwhile two choirs should be singing the Improperia or Reproaches._
Improperia
Two cantors sing the following:
℣. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. Because I led thee out of the land of Egypt, thou hast prepared a cross for thy Saviour.
Two cantors interchangeably
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
Two cantors:
℣. Because I led thee out through the desert forty years: and fed thee with manna, and brought thee into a land exceeding good, thou hast prepared a Cross for thy Saviour.
Two cantors interchangeably
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
Two cantors:
℣. What more ought I have done for thee, that I have not done? I planted thee, indeed, My most beautiful vineyard: and thou hast become exceeding bitter to Me: for in My thirst thou gavest Me vinegar to drink: and with a lance thou hast pierced the side of thy Saviour.
Two cantors interchangeably
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy God!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy strong One!
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
℟. O holy immortal one, have mercy on us.
Two cantors interchangeably
℣. For thy sake I scourged Egypt with its first-born: and thou hast scourged Me and delivered Me up.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I led thee out of Egypt having drowned Pharao in the Red Sea: and thou hast delivered Me to the chief priests.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I opened the sea before thee: and thou with a spear hast opened My side.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I went before thee in a pillar of cloud: and thou hast led Me to the judgement hall of Pilate.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I fed thee with manna in the desert; and thou hast beaten Me with whips and scourges.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I gave thee the water of salvation from the rock to drink: and thou hast given Me gall and vinegar.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. For thy sake I struck the kings of the Chanaanites: and thou hast struck My head with a reed.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I gave thee a royal sceptre: and thou hast given to My head a crown of thorns.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
℣. I exalted thee with great strength: and thou hast hanged Me on the gibbet of the Cross.
℟. O my people, what have I done to thee? or wherein have I afflicted thee? Answer me.
Antiphone
Ant. We adore Thy Cross, O Lord: and we praise and glorify Thy holy Resurrection: for behold by the wood of the Cross joy has come into the whole world.
Ps. 66:2
May God have mercy on us, and bless us: may He cause the light of His countenance to shine upon us, and have mercy on us.
Ant. We adore Thy Cross, O Lord: and we praise and glorify Thy holy Resurrection: for behold by the wood of the Cross joy has come into the whole world.
Crux fidelis
Ant. Faithful Cross! above all other, One and only noble Tree! None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit thy peer may be; Sweetest wood and sweetest iron, Sweetest weight is hung on thee.
℣. Sing, my tongue, the glorious battle! With completed victory rife! And above the Cross's trophy Tell the triumph of the strife: How the world's Redeemer conquer'd By the offering of His life.
Ant. Faithful Cross! above all other, One and only noble Tree! None in foliage, none in blossom, None in fruit thy peer may be.
℣. God, his Maker, sorely grieving, That the first-made Adam fell, When he ate the fruit of sorrow, Whose reward was death and hell, Noted then this Wood the ruin, Of the ancient wood to quell.
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron, Sweetest weight is hung on thee.
℣. For this work of our salvation Needs must have its order so, And the manifold deceiver's Art by art would overthrow, And from thence would bring the healing, Whence the insult of the foe.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. Wherefore when the appointed fullness Of the holy time was come, He was sent who maketh all things From th' eternal Father's home, And proceeded, God Incarnate, Offspring of the Virgin's womb.
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron
℣. Weeps the Infant in the manger That in Bethlehem's stable stands: And His Limbs the Virgin Mother Doth compose in swaddling bands, Meetly thus in linen folding Of her God the feet and hands.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. Thirty years among us dwelling, His appointed time fulfilled, Born for this, He meets His Passion, For that this He freely willed: On the Cross the Lamb is lifted, Where His life-blood shall be spilled.
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron
℣. He endured the nails, the spitting, Vinegar, and spear, and reed; From that holy Body broken Blood and water forth proceed: Earth, and stars, and sky, and ocean, By that flood from stain are freed.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. Bend thy boughs, O Tree of glory! Thy relaxing sinews bend; For awhile the ancient rigor, That thy birth bestowed, suspend: And the King of heavenly beauty On thy bosom gently tend!
Ant. Sweetest wood and sweetest iron
℣. Thou alone wast counted worthy This world's ransom to uphold; For a shipwrecked race preparing Harbor, like the Ark of old; With the sacred Blood anointed From the smitten Lamb that rolled.
Ant. Faithful Cross!
℣. To the Trinity be glory Everlasting, as is meet: Equal to the Father, equal To the Son, and Paraclete: Trinal Unity, Whose praises All created things repeat.
Amen.
Ant. Sweetest wood
The Cross is placed at the center of the altar so that it can be seen by all in the church, and the acolytes' candles are placed on either side. The Sacred Ministers change into purple vestments, but only the Deacon goest to the Altar of Repose with the acolytes. There he withdraws the Ciborium from the tabernacle without incensation, and returns to the High Altar, each acolyte carrying one of the lighted candles from the Altar of Repose. Meanwhile everyone else kneels, and the choir sings these antiphons:
We adore Thee, O Christ, and we bless Thee, because by Thy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.
Through a tree we were enslaved, and through a holy Cross have we been set free: the fruit of a tree led us astray, the Son of God bought us back.
Saviour of the world, do Thou save us, do Thou, who through Thy Cross and Blood didst redeem us, do Thou help us, our God, we beseech Thee.
Weekly Prayer
Act of Faith
O my God, I firmly believe that Thou art one God in Three Divine Persons, Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
I believe that Thy Divine Son became Man, and died for our sins, and that He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because Thou hast revealed them, Who canst neither deceive nor be deceived.
I believe that Thy Divine Son became Man, and died for our sins, and that He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because Thou hast revealed them, Who canst neither deceive nor be deceived.
Weekly Formation
Beatitude 6
The Beatitudes
Blessed are the pure of heart; for they shall see God.
Purity of heart is singleness of purpose before God, together with purity in thought, desire, word, and deed. A heart cleansed from divided and sinful attachments is made capable of knowing God more clearly and seeing Him in glory.
Saint & Feast
Principal celebrationCalendar title
Good Friday
A biography or feast reflection has not yet been prepared.
Customs & Fasting
Traditional fast · Complete abstinence
Traditional Lenten Friday fast and complete abstinence.
Today in Church History
Apparition of the Virgin Mary in Zeitoun
1968EventOn April 3, 1968, the Virgin Mary reportedly appeared above the Coptic Orthodox Church of Saint Mary in Zeitoun, Egypt. The apparition was witnessed by thousands and continued intermittently until 1971.
Marian apparitions remind us of Mary's ongoing presence and intercession.
Catechism
Catechism of the Catholic Church
At the heart of Christian faith is Christ’s unique sacrifice: the Paschal sacrifice that brings definitive redemption and restores us to communion with God. Jesus freely offered his life in love and obedience to the Father, fulfilling the mission of the suffering Servant, atoning for our sins, and making many righteous. His sacrifice is the source of eternal salvation, for he died for all and loved us “to the end.” As we reflect together, we can remember that salvation begins with God’s loving initiative, revealed in Christ reconciling the world to himself. Jesus also calls his disciples to take up their cross and follow him, inviting them to share, in the way known to God, in the mystery of his Paschal sacrifice.
In the Catechism, we learn that Jesus, by God’s grace, truly tasted death for every person and experienced the separation of his soul from his body. Holy Saturday, when Christ lay in the tomb, reveals God’s great sabbath rest after the fulfilment of salvation and brings peace to the whole universe (CCC 624). His time in the tomb connects his suffering before Easter with his glorious risen life: the same Christ who died is alive for evermore (CCC 625). His death was real, yet his body was preserved from corruption through its union with the divine Son (CCC 627). For families, Baptism helps us enter this mystery: dying to sin with Christ so that we may walk in newness of life, as Christ was raised from the dead (CCC 628).
The Church’s missionary mandate is rooted in the eternal love of the Most Holy Trinity and continues Christ’s mission of bringing the Gospel to all nations. This mission is a journey of love, shaped by Christ’s way of poverty, obedience, service, and self-sacrifice. As the Church faces human weakness and divisions among Christians, she is called to penance, renewal, and efforts toward unity. She also enters into respectful dialogue with those who do not yet accept the Gospel, recognizing the elements of truth and grace present among peoples. With patience, the Church proclaims the Good News, helps form Christian communities, and seeks to share in the renewal of human society in Christ, so that all may be drawn into the family of God.