Christians around the world today observe Good Friday, the anniversary of the day Jesus Christ was crucified on a hill called Golgotha outside the walls of Jerusalem over 2,000 years ago by Roman soldiers.
Christians on every continent participate in Good Friday processions, the Stations of the Cross, passion play re-enactments, and other solemn traditions to commemorate the Son of God’s willing sacrifice for the redemption of all mankind.
The following is the account of Good Friday from the Gospel according to Mark:
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
And the soldiers led him away inside the palace (that is, the praetorium); and they called together the whole battalion. And they clothed him in a purple cloak, and plaiting a crown of thorns they put it on him. And they began to salute him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck his head with a reed, and spat upon him, and they knelt down in homage to him. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the purple cloak, and put his own clothes on him. And they led him out to crucify him.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
And they compelled a passer-by, Simon of Cyre′ne, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. And they brought him to the place called Gol′gotha (which means the place of a skull). And they offered him wine mingled with myrrh; but he did not take it. And they crucified him, and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to decide what each should take. And it was the third hour, when they crucified him. And the inscription of the charge against him read, “The King of the Jews.” And with him they crucified two robbers, one on his right and one on his left. And those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads, and saying, “Aha! You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself, and come down from the cross!” So also the chief priests mocked him to one another with the scribes, saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those who were crucified with him also reviled him.
The Death of Jesus
And when the sixth hour had come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, “E′lo-i, E′lo-i, la′ma sabach-tha′ni?” which means, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” And some of the bystanders hearing it said, “Behold, he is calling Eli′jah.” And one ran and, filling a sponge full of vinegar, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink, saying, “Wait, let us see whether Eli′jah will come to take him down.” And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that he thus breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”
– Mark 15:16-39 (RSVCE)
Christians carrying a large wooden cross walk through Jerusalem’s Old City on their way to the Holy Sepulcre church during the Orthodox Good Friday procession on April 18, 2025. (Photo by AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP via Getty Images)
JERUSALEM – APRIL 18: Christians coming from around the world carrying wooden crosses march along the Via Dolorosa (Way of Suffering) before Easter in Jerusalem’s Old City during the Good Friday procession on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)
JERUSALEM – APRIL 18: Christians coming from around the world carrying wooden crosses march along the Via Dolorosa (Way of Suffering) before Easter in Jerusalem’s Old City during the Good Friday procession on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Palestinian Christians carry the traditional Greek Orthodox ‘Epitaphios’, a richly embroidered fabric depicting the body of Jesus Christ after he was taken down the cross, as they celebrate Good Friday at the church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza City on April 18, 2025. (OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images)
Christians living in Gaza City held a mass at St. Porphyrius Church on Good Friday, April 18, 2025. (Photo by Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Christians living in Gaza attend Good Friday mass at St. Porphyrius Church on April 18, 2025. (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Christians in Gaza attend Good Friday mass at St. Porphyrius Church on April 18, 2025. (Dawoud Abo Alkas/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Altar boys carry candles as Palestinian Christians attend the Good Friday mass at the Greek Orthodox church of Saint Porphyrius in Gaza City on April 18, 2025. (OMAR AL-QATTAA/AFP via Getty Images)
Lebanese Christians carry the statue of Christ on the cross, during the Good Friday procession in the southern village of Qlayaa near the border with Israel on April 18, 2025. (Photo by RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images)
Lebanese Christians carry the statue of Christ on the cross, during the Good Friday procession in the southern village of Qlayaa near the border with Israel on April 18, 2025. (RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images)
Christian worshippers take part in a Good Friday procession in Marjayoun, southern Lebanon, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images)
A member of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) carries the cross as he takes part in a Good Friday procession with fellow Christian worshippers in Marjayoun, southern Lebanon, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by RABIH DAHER/AFP via Getty Images)
Lebanese Christians attend the annual Good Friday procession and passion play re-enactment in the village of Qraiyeh, in Saida (Sidon) in southern Lebanon, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Houssam Shbaro/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Lebanese men re-enact the crucifiction of Jesus Christ in the village of Qrayyeh, east of the coastal city of Sidon on April 18, 2025. (Photo by MAHMOUD ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)
Lebanese Christians re-enact the crucifixion during the annual Good Friday procession in the village of Qraiyeh, in Saida (Sidon) in southern Lebanon, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Houssam Shbaro/Anadolu via Getty Images)
People attend the annual Good Friday procession and passion play re-enactment in the village of Qraiyeh, in Saida (Sidon) in southern Lebanon, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Houssam Shbaro/Anadolu via Getty Images)
A Lebanese Christian man portraying Jesus Christ takes part in the re-enactment of the crucifixion during the Good Friday procession in the southern Lebanese village of Qrayieh, near Sidon, on April 18, 2025. (Marwan Naamani/picture alliance via Getty Images)
DAMASCUS, SYRIA – APRIL 18: Syrian Christians commemorate Good Friday on April 18, 2025, at the Church of the Cross in the capital Damascus. (Bakr Al Kasem/Anadolu via Getty Images)
DAMASCUS, SYRIA – APRIL 18: Syrian Christians commemorate Good Friday ahead of Easter, in Damascus, Syria on April 18, 2025, at the Church of the Cross in the capital Damascus, scout teams performed with a marching band. (Photo by Bakr Al Kasem/Anadolu via Getty Images)
A general view shows St Peter’s basilica during the celebration of the Passion of the Lord on Good Friday as part of the Holy Week, in the Vatican on April 18, 2025. (Photo by ANDREAS SOLARO/AFP via Getty Images)
U.S. Vice President JD Vance, his wife Usha Vance and their children attend the celebration of the Passion of the Lord on Good Friday as part of the Holy Week, at St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican on April 18, 2025. (Photo by KENNY HOLSTON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
Italian cardinal Baldassare Reina attends the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis) outside the colosseum as part of Good Friday celebration in Rome on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
People gather outside the Colosseum before the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis) as part of Good Friday during the Holy Week in Rome on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
Faithful hold candles outside the Colosseum during the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis) as part of Good Friday during the Holy Week in Rome on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
Faithful hold candles outside the Colosseum during the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis) as part of Good Friday during the Holy Week in Rome on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Tiziana FABI / AFP) (Photo by TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
A priest carries a cross during a Way of the Cross procession, which recalls the last stage of the journey that Jesus walked, in front of the Cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris, as part of Good Friday celebrations, in Paris on April 18, 2025. (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
Nuns kneel as they pray during a Good Friday Meditation gathering in front of the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, in Paris on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
The Knights of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre attend in a ceremony of veneration of the Crown of Thorns, a relic of the Passion of Christ at the Cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris, as part of Good Friday celebrations, in Paris on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
Archbishop of Paris Laurent Ulrich (CL) carries the Crown of Thorns during the procession at the Cathedral Notre-Dame de Paris, as part of Good Friday celebrations, in Paris on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (Photo by DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP via Getty Images)
Christian faithful follow the Stations of the Cross at the foot of the Sacre Coeur Basilica in Montmartre on Good Friday during Lent. (Photo by Vincent Koebel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 18: The Wintershall Players perform “The Passion Of Jesus” for an audience in Trafalgar Square on April 18, 2025 in London, England. The Wintershall players bring to life the final days of the life of Jesus in Central London on Good Friday. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images)
LONDON, UK – APRIL 18: A theater play is staged to commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus during the “Good Friday” event before Easter, in Trafalgar Square in London, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Rasid Necati Aslim/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – APRIL 18: An audience looks on as the Wintershall Players perform “The Passion Of Jesus” in Trafalgar Square on April 18, 2025 in London, England. The Wintershall players bring to life the final days of the life of Jesus in Central London on Good Friday. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images)
Churches Together Folkestone mark Good Friday on the Easter weekend with a service in the town centre followed by a procession carrying a cross up to the top of Sugarloaf hill, a local look out point where 3 crosses are displayed on top of the hill on the 18th of April 2025 in Folkestone, United Kingdom.
(photo by Andrew Aitchison / In pictures via Getty Images)
Churches Together Folkestone mark Good Friday on the Easter weekend with a service in the town centre followed by a procession carrying a cross up to the top of Sugarloaf hill, a local look out point where 3 crosses are displayed on top of the hill on the 18th of April 2025 in Folkestone, United Kingdom. (photo by Andrew Aitchison / In pictures via Getty Images)
Pilgrims carrying wooden crosses cross the sands at low tide to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne in Northumberland during the annual Christian Easter pilgrimage on Good Friday. Picture date: Friday April 18, 2025. (Photo by Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty Images)
SEVILLE, SPAIN – APRIL 18: Processions take place in the historic center of Seville in the early hours of Good Friday, as part of the city’s traditional Holy Week celebrations, with brotherhoods carrying sacred images of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary in Spain on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Diego Radames/Anadolu via Getty Images)
SEVILLE, SPAIN – APRIL 18: Processions take place in the historic center of Seville in the early hours of Good Friday, as part of the city’s traditional Holy Week celebrations, with brotherhoods carrying sacred images of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary in Spain on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Diego Radames/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Actors and spectators take part in a re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday in Bensheim, western Germany on April 18, 2025. Christian believers around the world mark the Holy Week of Easter remembering the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. (Photo by Kirill KUDRYAVTSEV / AFP) (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
Spectators watch as actors perform during a re-enactment of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday in Bensheim, western Germany on April 18, 2025. Christian believers around the world mark the Holy Week of Easter remembering the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. (Photo by KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty Images)
KALWARIA ZEBRZYDOWSKA, POLAND – APRIL 18: Thousands of pilgrims pray as they take part in the Way of the Cross during the Good Friday celebrations in Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, Poland, on April 18, 2025. The annual religious event draws worshippers from across the country to commemorate the Passion of Christ in one of Poland’s most significant pilgrimage sites. (Photo by Omar Marques/Anadolu via Getty Images)
KALWARIA ZEBRZYDOWSKA, POLAND – APRIL 18: Actors portraying Jesus and Roman soldiers take part in the Way of the Cross during Good Friday celebrations on April 18, 2025, in Kalwaria Zebrzydowska, Poland. The reenactment, held annually as part of one of Poland’s most significant religious traditions, draws thousands of pilgrims to commemorate the Passion of Christ. (Photo by Omar Marques/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NAIROBI, KENYA – APRIL 18: A ceremony is held in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on Good Friday, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Gerald Anderson/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NAIROBI, KENYA – APRIL 18: A ceremony is held in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on Good Friday, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Gerald Anderson/Anadolu via Getty Images)
NAIROBI, KENYA – APRIL 18: A ceremony is held in Kenya’s capital Nairobi on Good Friday, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Gerald Anderson/Anadolu via Getty Images)
KAMPALA, UGANDA – APRIL 18: People attend the annual “Good Friday” procession, a Christian holy day observing the crucifixion of Jesus in Kamapala, Uganda on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Nicholas Kajoba/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Christians reenact Jesus’s Via Crucis (Way of the Cross) during Good Friday in El Retiro, Antioquia department, Colombia, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by JAIME SALDARRIAGA/AFP via Getty Images)
Actors reenact Jesus’s Via Crucis during Good Friday in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Orlando SIERRA / AFP) (Photo by ORLANDO SIERRA/AFP via Getty Images)
Catholic faithful attend a Good Friday mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine in Aparecida, São Paulo State, Brazil, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by Roosevelt Cássio / AFP) (Photo by ROOSEVELT CASSIO/AFP via Getty Images)
A Catholic worshipper attends a Good Friday procession in Kolkata, India, on April 18, 2025. Hundreds of participants walk through the streets of the eastern Indian city, some carrying crosses and others chanting prayers and hymns as they observe the Stations of the Cross. (Photo by Rupak De Chowdhuri/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
A Catholic worshipper attends a Good Friday procession in Kolkata, India, on April 18, 2025. Hundreds of participants walk through the streets of the eastern Indian city, some carrying crosses and others chanting prayers and hymns as they observe the Stations of the Cross. (Photo by Rupak De Chowdhuri/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Christian devotees attend a Good Friday service at St Anthony’s Church in Lahore, Pakistan, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images)
A Christian devotee kisses a depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ during a Good Friday service at St Anthony’s Church in Lahore, Pakistan, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images)
Christian devotees attend a Good Friday service at St Anthony’s Church in Lahore, Pakistan, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images)
Christian devotees attend a Good Friday service at St Anthony’s Church in Lahore, Pakistan, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images)
A nun walks to the entrance of St. George church (10th to 12th century A.D), the oldest place of worship still active in Montenegro on Good Friday, in Podgorica, on April 18, 2025. (Photo by SAVO PRELEVIC/AFP via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 18: Parishioners from the Saint Martin of Tours Catholic Church participate in the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn on April 18, 2025 in New York City. The Stations of the Cross, or the Way of the Cross, is performed on Good Friday by Catholics around the world and depicts in a series of images Jesus Christ’s last day on earth leading to his crucifixion. (Photo by Stephanie Keith 100584/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 18: Parishioners from six different Catholic Churches in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood participate in the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday on April 18, 2025 in New York City. The Stations of the Cross, or the Way of the Cross, is performed on Good Friday by Catholics around the world and depicts in a series of images Jesus Christ’s last day on earth leading to his crucifixion. (Photo by Stephanie Keith 100584/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 18: Parishioners from the Saint Martin of Tours Catholic Church participate in the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn on April 18, 2025, in New York City. (Stephanie Keith 100584/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 18: Parishioners from the Saint Martin of Tours Catholic Church participate in the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn on April 18, 2025, in New York City. (Photo by Stephanie Keith 100584/Getty Images)
Read the full article here
