Bhubaneswar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister of Odisha Naveen Patnaik recalled the courage and sacrifices of Jesus Christ on the occasion of Good Friday, which commemorates his crucifixion at Calvary, on Friday.
Good Friday falls on the sixth day of Holy Week which leads to Easter, which will be celebrated on the first Sunday after the Paschal Full Moon which is on April 9 this year. Easter Sunday commemorates Jesus Christ’s resurrection from death as it was on this day that Mary Magdalene discovered an empty tomb in the cave where Jesus Christ was placed after his crucifixion on Good Friday.
Good Friday is observed as a public holiday in India, Canada, the UK, Germany, Australia, Bermuda, Brazil, Finland, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore and Sweden among others. And it is a day of grief, penance and fasting for Christians across the globe.
Since Christians believe that Jesus sacrificed his flesh for their sins, many people across the UK abstain from eating meat –poultry, beef and pork – on the day. The tradition of not eating meat on Good Friday and opting for fish instead goes back for centuries, the National World reported.
“Abstinence laws consider that meat comes only from animals such as chickens, cows, sheep or pigs — all of which live on land. Birds are also considered meat.” Moreover, meat is seen as a celebratory cuisine and fish is an everyday item.
Some Christians, predominantly Catholics, extend this tradition to all Fridays, the report added.
In the UK, bookies earlier had to close shop on Good Friday to stop people from placing a bet on the day’s football matches. No horse racing was not allowed. However, this has changed since 2008 when the 2005 Gambling Act came into force and allowed bookies to be open every day of the year except Christmas Day, the portsmouth.co.uk reported.
Similarly, laughing and dancing are banned in Germany. Comedic theatre performances and public dancing are illegal on this day.
In Spain, processions are taken out throughout the country, the most famous being in Malaga. Codfish cakes, hot-cross buns and kite flying are distinctly Bermudian Easter weekend traditions.
