Despite increasing secularism, the Cross of Good Friday remains a symbol of self-giving and sacrifice, of hope and reconciliation. Christians mark this day as the day Christ died on the cross, but also see the empty cross as the sign of hope for new beginnings, new life, and hope for a peace that is greater than the peace the world can give.
In recent weeks, though, the symbolism of the cross has been abused. As the invasion of Iraq was being prepared, many in the Arab world heard indiscreet references to a "Crusade" and recalled the horrors of medieval "holy wars" in which Western warriors, their armour emblazoned with large crosses, set off on religious campaigns to rid many parts of the Middle East of their Muslim populations.
At times, there was a real danger that the war in Iraq would be seen as a "Christian" war against "Muslims". There is still the danger that Western action has deepened and widened the divisions between Christians and Muslims. And yet these people hold so much in common: they worship the One God; the Quran respects the Bible, the Prophets and Jesus; and God's peace is at the core of their message. These two great monotheistic faiths, along with Judaism, are part of the family of Abraham - who himself came from Ur, in the south of present-day Iraq.
Despite all its faults and failings, Iraq sought to be a pluralist society, acknowledging the rights of Christians and (at times) of Jews, at least in law, along with those of other, ancient minorities. Now there are growing demands for an Islamic state, where the Muslim clergy would impose Islamic sharia law. A war some saw as a crusade may have dealt a deadly blow to Iraq's ancient Christian minority, and may have created an unwelcome image of the cross throughout the Muslim world.
But Good Friday is a day of hope. Organisations bearing the sign of the cross can still redress those negative images created in recent weeks. Agencies such as Trócaire and Christian Aid were among the first to show that Christians in the West care about the plight of people in Iraq - irrespective of faith or beliefs.
Their Christian commitment to caring and justice in a world still marked by careless violence and gross injustice, their hope for peace and reconciliation in days of war and deep divisions, show that there are still Christians who believe hatred can be overcome by love, war and violence must give way to peace and reconciliation, death does not have the last word, and the Cross of Good Friday always leads to the hope of Easter.