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~ Good Friday ~
Festival Date - 06 APR 2012
Good Friday, also known as holy Friday,
Long Friday, Sad Friday and great Friday in other parts of the
world, commemorates the day Jesus Christ was crucified by the
Romans. Christian dogma states Christ willingly died on the cross to
save the world from sin.
Malaysian Christians gather in churches around the country for
services to mark the �saddest day� in the Christian calendar.
Many churches hold several services, including one at 3pm �
the hour Christ is traditionally said to have died.
While it is a state holiday in Sabah and
Sarawak, in others states
many will either take the day off or time-off from work in order to
observe the day,
one of the holiest for Christians.
In the 102 year old St. Joseph�s church in Sentul,
Kuala Lumpur, a
symbolic re-enactment of the final hours of Christ\s life, known as
�The Way of the Cross�, is held before the services. It has
14�stations�, each one marking a significant milestone, beginning
with Christ being condemned to death and
ending with him being laid in the tomb.
The crucifix, usually the most prominent feature in churches, is
concealed by a purple drape. The drape is then removed for another
ritual, known as the �Veneration of the Cross� where the faithful
kiss and pay homage to a cross as a symbol of penance and
contrition.
Like all the days in Lent � the 40 day period of fasting and
abstinence that precedes Easter � the call for � Alleluia� would be
missing from prayers. Alleluia, an exclamation of joy, would be left
out in observance of what is essentially a season of mourning.
Good Friday is the second day of the Easter Triduum, which begins
with Maundy (or Holy) Thursday and culminates in the Easter vigil
mass held at
midnight on the day after Good Friday.
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