The Strange “Good” of Good Friday

It was always puzzling to me as a child as to why anyone would call the day when Jesus was crucified “good.” Not only had he died on that day, but his death had been brutal. For the life of me I could not understand.

The adjective “good” can still cause a little angst in my soul, but there is a “good” in what Jesus did. He was murdered because he stood against the Empire. He was given a mock trial, where there was no justice, and was left alone by the Empire and the church to fend for himself. He fought for justice even though he knew it was dangerous. He understood the journey of fighting against oppression, and took it on, regardless of what it cost him.

It cost him his life, as did doing so cost Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dr. Martin Luther King, and so many other unknown brave souls. Jesus lived out what he had taught: “whoever tries to save his life will lose it, but whomever loses his life for my sake will gain it.” Jesus looked oppression in the face and, like the child David, confronted the giant.

Whatever we think of this day, it is clear that Jesus fought oppression so that people could experience the kingdom of God, heaven, on this earth, not just some people, those who had privilege and money, but “the least of these” as well. The “good” of this day is that by example, Jesus showed us what being serious about social justice means. They took his life, but they could not kill the idea of justice Jesus taught. The victory was his.

Thanks be to God.

Rev. Dr. Susan K. Smith is the founder of Crazy Faith Ministries and a communications consultant with the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference, Inc.