Good Friday - Jesus' possible death date, In the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches

In the Christian Church, the Friday before Easter, commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ; in many Christian denominations a day of mourning and penance.

Portions of the summary below have been contributed by Wikipedia.

Good Friday
Observed by	most Christians
Type	Christian
Significance	commemorates the crucifixion of Jesus
Date	Friday immediately preceding Easter Sunday
2006 date	April 14 (Western) April 21 (Eastern)
2007 date	April 6
Celebrations	No traditional celebrations
Observances	Prayer, fasting, some family gatherings
Related to	Passover, Christmas (which honors the birth of Jesus), Septuagesima, Quinquagesima, Shrove Tuesday, Ash Wednesday, Lent, Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday and Holy Saturday which lead up to Easter, Easter Sunday (primarily), Ascension, Pentecost, Whit Monday, Trinity Sunday, and Corpus Christi which follow it

Good Friday is a holy day celebrated by most Christians on the Friday before Easter or Pascha.

In Latin America and Portugal the day is called the "Holy Friday" and in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Faroe Islands and Iceland the day is called "The Long Friday"

Jesus' possible death date

As a matter of historical fact, the date of Christ's death is unknown and cannot be calculated from the information in the Gospels. John 19:31) Jesus died on Preparation Day (the day before the Sabbath), which would make it a Friday.

In Western Christianity the earliest possible date for Good Friday is March 20 and the latest possible date is April 23.

In the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches

Instead of the Divine Liturgy, the Orthodox and Eastern Catholics meet up to three times during the day for prayer: in the forenoon, to pray the Royal Hours appointed for that day;

In the Roman Catholic Church

Dates for Good Friday, 2000-2020

Year	Western	Eastern
2000	April 21	April 28
2001	April 13
2002	March 29	May 3
2003	April 18	April 25
2004	April 9
2005	March 25	April 29
2006	April 14	April 21
2007	April 6
2008	March 21	April 25
2009	April 10	April 17
2010	April 2
2011	April 22
2012	April 6	April 13
2013	March 29	May 3
2014	April 18
2015	April 3	April 10
2016	March 25	April 29
2017	April 14
2018	March 30	April 6
2019	April 19	April 26
2020	April 10	April 17

Roman Catholic Christians treat Good Friday as a fast day, which is defined as only having one full meal or two small ones.

The Catholic Good Friday in the Roman Rite afternoon service involves a series of readings and meditations, as well as the (sung) reading of the Passion account from the Gospel of John which is often read dramatically, with the priest, one or more readers, and the congregation all taking part. Unlike Roman Catholic services on other days, the Good Friday service is not a Mass, and in fact, celebration of Catholic Mass on Good Friday is forbidden.

Anglican Communion

The 1662 Book of Common Prayer did not specify a particular rite to be observed on Good Friday but local custom came to mandate an assortment of services, including the Seven Last Words from the Cross and a three-hour service consisting of Matins, Ante-communion (using the Reserved Sacrament in high church parishes) and Evensong.

Some Baptist, many Sabbatarian and non-denominational churches do not celebrate Good Friday, instead observing the Crucifixion on Wednesday to coincide with the Jewish sacrifice of the Passover Lamb (which Christians believe is an Old Testament pointer to Jesus Christ). A Wednesday Crucifixion of Jesus Christ allows for Christ to be in the tomb (heart of the earth) for three days and three nights as he told the Pharisees he would be (Matthew 12:40), rather than two nights and a day if he died on Friday. The Latin calendar includes partial days as full days, thus the early church determined those three days Jesus Christ was in the tomb included Friday and Sunday.

Customs associated with Good Friday

In many countries with a strong Christian tradition such as Germany, Chile, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, the day is observed as a public or federal holiday. U.S. governments are also constitutionally prevented from forcing most private businesses to open or close on any particular day, so the stock markets are usually closed on Good Friday along with many other businesses (especially in rural areas) - but the majority of businesses are open on Good Friday.

In South Africa, the government regulates the opening of businesses and entertainment outlets on this day (as with Christmas Day).

Eastern Orthodox Christians eat as little as possible on this day while the Roman Catholic Church observes fasting and abstinence for this day as well as Ash Wednesday.