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CHAPTER XLI
Good Friday.
To-day the Church of Rome calls the faithful to
assemble for the STATION in the church of the Holy
Cross of Jerusalem, the name of which and the sacred
relics enshrined in it recall the great Sacrifice consum
mated for the salvation of mankind. Being a day of
universal mourning the sacred ministers at the morning
Office wear black vestments.
In the liturgical books this day goes by the
name, Feria sexta in Parasceve. Parasceve is a Greek
word which means preparation. In conformity with
the Jewish customs this term was applied to all the
Fridays of the year, because on that day, in order
not to violate the law of the Sabbath rest, all that
was necessary for the morrow was prepared. Accord
ing to the law of Moses, this rest of the Sabbath
was far stricter than that of the Sunday under the
new law, work of every kind being forbidden, even
that of preparing food. The Latin Church makes
use of the term, Feria sexta in Parasceve, to desig
nate the day on which our Lord was crucified,
because on this day He finished the work for which
He had come on earth, and entered into the rest of
the tomb. Sometimes also this day is called the
Passover of the Crucifixion, or passage from life to
death by the tortures of the Cross, in contradistinction
to the Passover of the Resurrection which marks the
passage from death to life.