Good Friday Family Program Promotion
- Tue, Apr 4, 2023 7:40 PM
My Brother Knights and Families, Good Friday is fast approaching and the as Knights of Columbus we have an opportunity to help fill the seats at services. The Good Friday Family Promotion Program is a great way to help get this done. Ask Father if your Council can promote Good Friday services by downloading the poster located on the Supreme website. Most churches will already be promoting this in the bulletin, but here are a couple of ideas. If you have a Council newsletter put it in there, maybe ask a few of the Christian businesses in your area to place the poster in a prominent place. Many Christians also observe Good Friday, and this may be a way to evangelize. Perhaps your Council has access to Catholic Radio, perhaps a newspaper ad or billboard.
The program is simple but from a spiritual point of view there is so much more that we can do to enrich our Lenten journey. Good Friday is the day on which Catholics commemorate the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Catholics are joined by almost all other Christians in solemn commemoration on this day. The events of Good Friday are commemorated in the Stations of the Cross. The Stations of the Cross are commonly recited on Wednesdays and Fridays during Lent. Another devotional, the Acts of Reparation, may also be prayed. Here is a great way to get involved in your Parish, ask Father if your Council can lead Stations during Lent. Perhaps if you are able, you can help with the meal that usually accompanies Stations.
In the seventh century, the Church in Rome adopted the practice of Adoration of the Cross from the Church in Jerusalem, where a fragment of wood believed to be the Lord's cross had been venerated every year on Good Friday since the fourth century. According to tradition, a part of the Holy Cross was discovered by the mother of the emperor Constantine, St. Helen, on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 326. A fifth century account describes this service in Jerusalem. A coffer of gold-plated silver containing the wood of the cross was brought forward. The bishop placed the relic on the a table in the chapel of the Crucifixion and the faithful approached it, touching brow and eyes and lips to the wood as the priest said (as every priest has done ever since): 'Behold, the Wood of the Cross.'
We are so fortunate to have such a rich history and tradition in the church. Here is another opportunity to help promote our faith. Teach children and grandchildren about the sign of the cross. It is a visible sign of one's belief in Christ and of one's hope in the redemption which flows from His Cross. By making this sign both in public and in private we affirm our faith in Christ crucified and ask for His blessing and protection. It is also a gesture of reverence to the Blessed Sacrament. Please get involved and use this as a chance to contact the homebound, ask if they need a ride to services and set up a car pool. Invite someone you have not seen at church lately, sometimes it is just a matter of inviting them to get them involved again.
Your Brother in Christ
Garret A. Kelenske State Family Director