The church has always understood that the day commemorated on Good Friday was anything but happy. Sadness, mourning, fasting, and prayer have been its focus since the early centuries. Early Christians called Good Friday a “day of mourning, not a day of festive Joy.” Many Christian churches celebrate Good Friday with a subdued service, in which Christ’s death is remembered with solemn hymns, prayers of thanksgiving, a message centered on Christ suffering for our sakes.