Michelle Malkin » Good Friday around the world

Good Friday around the world

By Michelle Malkin • March 21, 2008 11:54 AM

Today’s Good Friday celebration at the Vatican will focus on religious persecution in China. The Tibet crackdown is garnering the biggest headlines at the moment and China’s actions against the Falun Gong are well-known, but the Pope will put the spotlight on Christian persecution in the communist state:

Pope Benedict XVI’s observance of the traditional Good Friday procession at Rome’s Colosseum will have distinctly Chinese overtones at a time of delicate relations between the Vatican and Beijing.

While the situation of China’s Roman Catholics will be at the heart of a meditation to be offered by Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun of Hong Kong, the unrest in Tibet has taken the spotlight in bilateral relations.

The pope broke his silence on Tibet during his weekly general audience on Wednesday when he advocated dialogue, saying: “Violence does not resolve problems, it only aggravates them.”

Meanwhile on Thursday, the religious affairs news agency I.Media reported that a Chinese government delegation had a secret meeting at the Vatican on Tuesday. The unconfirmed talks were planned long before the outbreak of violence in Tibet, the agency said. Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi refused all comment on the meeting, not even confirming or denying it took place. Any such meeting would be highly unusual, as China and the Vatican have not had diplomatic relations for more than half a century.

Cardinal Zen, who is to lead the long-planned Way of the Cross procession which is to begin at 9:15 pm (2015 GMT) at Rome’s Colosseum on Friday, is a key figure for Asian Catholics including those in China who are split between the official and clandestine Catholic churches. According to an advance text released by the Vatican, Zen will refer to “living martyrs of the 21st century.” “The pope wanted me to speak for our brothers and sisters” in Asia, Zen will say at the start of his meditation.

The observance is held every year at the Colosseum where, according to legend, early Christians were thrown to the lions. Zen will also say that Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Jerusalem who approved the death sentence for Jesus, was the “symbol of all those who use authority as an instrument of power and don’t concern themselves with justice.” A brochure published by the Vatican to accompany the event is illustrated with Chinese artworks representing each of the 14 Stations of the Cross.

Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem pray for peace.

In the Philippines, it’s whips and nails.

This piece notes that today is something of a religious convergence:

For Christians, it’s Good Friday, which marks the death of Jesus and leads to Easter’s celebration of the resurrection. For Sunni Muslims, depending on the moon, it will be Eid Milad an Nabi, a festival marking the birth of the Prophet Muhammad.

Friday, remarkably, is also the Jewish festival of Purim, the Bahai new year of Nawruz, and the start of Hinduism’s spring festival of colors, Holi.

Why so many holidays on one day? Mainly it’s a matter of the vernal equinox–the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere–coinciding with key phases of the moon and a host of ancient calendars.

Purim, for instance, is celebrated on the 14th day of the Hebrew month of Adar, which just happens this year to be March 21. Eid Milad an Nabi always falls in the Islamic month of Rabi’ al-awwal, which year by year circles its way around the Gregorian calendar but this year falls about March 21 if you’re Sunni, or March 25 if you’re Shiite.

Nawruz, a New Year celebration marked across parts of Southern and Central Asia as well as by followers of Bahai, always falls around the vernal equinox, usually on March 21. Holi, celebrated with bonfires and people throwing colored powders, comes after a full moon in the Hindu month of Phalguna, this year March 21. And Good Friday just happens this year to fall the earliest it has in many decades, also on March 21.

Here’s the Way of The Cross page at the Vatican website.

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#1

On March 21st, 2008 at 11:55 am, meatpieandtatters said:

Think peace, love and happiness and do something kind for a stranger…without expectation of anything in return. Do goodness.
#2

On March 21st, 2008 at 11:59 am, zorro said:

Thanks for this post Michelle. In our family, between noon and 3 we will all meditate and pray, no TV, radio, no Internet.

See you in three hours. God Bless you and all your readers.
#3

On March 21st, 2008 at 12:02 pm, BobK said:

You got that right meatpieandtatters. I really don’t know why but this morning I had the urge to do just that and I did.

“the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere” Yep - we are expecting about 6 to 10 inches of spring here north of Chicago today. Damn Global Warming.
#4

On March 21st, 2008 at 12:10 pm, 30 pcs of silver said:

Here’s to wishing everyone nothing but peace, love and prosperity.
#5

On March 21st, 2008 at 12:56 pm, letget said:

A blessed Good Friday to you Michelle, your family, and all who post here.
L
#6

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:16 pm, katieanne said:

A blessed Good Friday to everyone.
#7

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:38 pm, rooster said:

Sorry BobK, it is a near perfect spring day here in the south. Great start to a very important time for our human history and salvation.
#8

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:48 pm, Jordan Yentsch said:

Please keep these people is your prayers.
Iraq
#9

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:52 pm, aunursa said:

Happy Good Friday … from a Jewish reader.
#10

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:52 pm, Jordan Yentsch said:

Let me try it again.
Iraq
#11

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:53 pm, Jordan Yentsch said:

Never mind.
#12

On March 21st, 2008 at 1:58 pm, KCK said:

Art of Good Friday
#13

On March 21st, 2008 at 2:11 pm, letget said:

aunursa
Thank you. I pray for Israel and the Jewish people around the world daily.
L
#14

On March 21st, 2008 at 2:42 pm, emjem24 said:

I hope everybody here and around the world has a wonderful Easter. Please keep our guys and gals in Iraq/Afghanistan in your prayers. At the end of the day I’ll spend a quiet hour or two lighting candles and wishing for nothing but the best for those who have suffered/sacrificed for those of us here and around the world to celebrate Easter. My prayers for three countries trying to find their way amidst the chaos: Iraq, Afghanistan, and Israel.
#15

On March 21st, 2008 at 5:01 pm, 29Victor said:

In the Philippines, it’s whips and nails.

Well, you know how crazy those Filipinos can get.

God bless everyone. And have a happy Easter.
#16

On March 21st, 2008 at 5:22 pm, samiam said:

Has anyone else noticed the wording in the top article…

“The observance is held every year at the Colosseum where, according to legend, early Christians were thrown to the lions.”

Didn’t know that this had also become “legend”…
#17

On March 21st, 2008 at 6:08 pm, 29Victor said:

samiam

Darn good point. I believe that the feeding of early Christians is pretty well documented.

This caught my eye:

Zen will also say that Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Jerusalem who approved the death sentence for Jesus, was the “symbol of all those who use authority as an instrument of power and don’t concern themselves with justice.”

But Pilate’s fatal flaw wasn’t that he “use[d] his authority as an instrument of power…” like he wanted to get rid of Jesus. Pilate’s flaw was that he did what was unjust because he was afraid of public opinion.
#18

On March 21st, 2008 at 6:18 pm, Kevin K. said:

re Christians being thrown to the lions in the Coliseum: I believe that the legend part is that the throwing was done in the Coliseum, not that it was done.

All sorts of good celebrations! Happy [select your favorite religious celebration] to all.
#19

On March 21st, 2008 at 6:37 pm, 24Klady said:

Wishing everyone a blessed holiday, peace, contentment, and nourishment for your soul.
#20

On March 21st, 2008 at 6:43 pm, Leatherneck said:

Happy Easter everyone, G-d died for us out of love, not the other way around. All other religions are false, and that got those early Christians fed to lions.
#21

On March 21st, 2008 at 10:30 pm, shooter said:

God Bless everyone here and everywhere on this Good Friday and Easter weekend. Blessed Purim to all who celebrate it as well. (we incorporate the Hebraic calendar in our Christian church) busy day today.

Think about this;
On that Friday of 2000+ years ago, after Jesus died on the cross, now imagine you are a disciple or follower of Jesus.
Then someone, maybe a Roman guard, comes to you and laughs, and yells in your face…
“YOUR MESSIAH, YOUR JESUS, IS DEAD!”

They then carry HIM away.

This is just a tiny part of some of the greatness of these original followers and the Disciples, FAITH, LOVE, TRUST in GOD.
Can you imagine?
Today we KNOW what happened on that Sunday so long ago, the third day. We know what happens next, our Lord Rises, and we call it Easter.

They did not have the benefit of 2000 years of Easter Sundays so as not to be afraid.

THANK YOU JESUS CHRIST.
THANK YOU MY LORD, MY GOD.

And thanks to those faithful and patient followers of THE Messiah, Jesus Christ.