“The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man be perfected without trials.”—Danish Proverb
In the Torah, the process of creationis divided into six days with the seventh as a day of rest. By the end of the sixth day, all the creation was completed.
“And God saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.“—Genesis 1:31
According to the Jewish calendar, the daily count starts on Sunday, so Friday is the sixth day, which in God’s view was very good. In the King James version of the Bible, the word “Good”, meaning “joy and pleasure”, appears 809 times. How then is it possible to call the day when Jesus, the Son of God, who was crucified by Romans “Good Friday”? Christianity, like any other religion is full of the controversies. There is a belief that the original name for this day was “God’s Friday”, which over the years became its present name. According to Wikipedia, this day is also called “Holy Friday”, “Great Friday”, “Black Friday”, or “Easter Friday”.
After Jesus died on the cross and the Roman centurion (soldier) pierced his body with a lance and blood and water came out, he was proclaimed dead and was buried in the cave. Three days later (i.e. on Sunday), his body disappeared from his grave and there were some witnesses who claimed that they saw Jesus alive. Thus the story of the resurrection was born, which is now celebrated on Easter Sunday, which is probably the most celebrated Christian holiday. But what do bunnies and hard boiled painted eggs have to do with the resurrection?
According to GotQuestions.org, ancient Roman Catholic church authorities mixed this event with the pagan celebration of the goddess of spring called “Eastre”, whose earthly symbol was a rabbit, which was also known as a symbol of fertility, in attempt to attract non-believers.
In religion, like in other aspects of our lives, marketing and packaging sells. My concept of marketing, which coincides with Good Friday is to “Find good in any adversity”.
P.S.
On March 13, 2013, Catholic Christians learned of their next spiritual leader, The New Pope, Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Pope Francis) is Spanish speaking from Argentina. Cuba, which was occupied by Spain for many years as well, not only adopted the Spanish language, but also the Catholic faith, which often blends with some Caribbean influence. For the last 53 years, Cuba has been a socialist country which follows Karl Marx’s doctrine that the “Religion is Opium for the masses”.
On our trip to Havana, we saw many dilapidated, old and beautiful buildings. But when we visited two cathedrals, we were shocked by their beauty and opulence and perfect condition. Miracles do happen.
You can discover for yourself how beautiful these places of worship are by joining us on our next trip to Cuba in December. Meanwhile, enjoy some of the images I photographed.
P.P.S.
I do not want to spoil your Holiday spirit, therefore I will write about what is good in getting a new mortgage next week.
Happy Easter!
SHARE IT WITH A FRIEND
