The name given for the day on which Christ's death is remembered. Other names include Long Friday, Day of Preparation, Day of the Lord's Passion.
The adjective describes the benefits derived to us from our Lord's death for which it commemorates.
The practice of observing it as a day of rememberance probably traced back to the early days of the Christian church. Elaborate ceremonies became attached to it when the Church was officialized by the conversion of Constatine the Great. One of these was the "veneration of the Cross," a custom already practiced in the 4th Cent, still in use in the Roman Catholic Church, though condemned by the Reformers. Many modern churches observe it by encouraging members to medidate on the "Seven Words from the Cross."
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