Good Friday - Lutheran Church

Lutheran Church

In Lutheran tradition from the 16th to the 20th century, Good Friday was the most important holiday, and abstention from all worldly works was expected. During that time, Lutheranism had no restrictions on the celebration of the Eucharist on Good Friday; on the contrary, it was a prime day on which to receive the Eucharist, and services were often accentuated by special music such as the St Matthew Passion by Lutheran Johann Sebastian Bach.

In more recent, the Lutheran liturgical practice moved away from the Eucharist celebrated on Good Friday, and among the major Lutheran bodies today, the Eucharist is not celebrated on Good Friday. Rather, it is celebrated in remembrance of the Last Supper on Maundy Thursday. The common practice among Lutheran churches is to celebrate a tenebrae service on Good Friday, typically conducted in candlelight and consisting of the crucifixion readings.

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