On Good Friday, during the Veneration of the Cross, some priests remove their shoes before approaching the crucifix. Though not strictly required by the rubrics, this gesture is deeply meaningful: biblical, liturgical, and spiritual.
1. It is biblical.
“Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground” (Exodus 3:5). Moses did it. Joshua did the same (Joshua 5:15). Before the Cross—the place of our redemption, the priest stands on holy ground.
2. It expresses reverence in the liturgy.
The Missale Romanum directs that the Cross be approached with a profound sign of reverence. Removing shoes, though optional, intensifies that reverence, it is humility made visible.
3. It is a gesture of humility.
To stand barefoot is to come without status, without pride, without defence. On a day when Christ was stripped of everything, the priest too stands stripped, simple, vulnerable, and reverent.
4. It carries the wisdom of the Fathers.
St. Gregory of Nyssa reminds us to remove not just sandals, but “earthly thoughts.” St. Ephrem the Syrian calls us to approach the wood of salvation with bare feet and a pierced heart. St. John Chrysostom speaks of the Cross as holy ground, not of fire, but of blood and love.
5. It speaks of detachment.
St. Teresa of Ávila teaches that one must remove the “sandals” of attachment to walk towards the Crucified.
The gesture is outward, but the call is inward.
6. It aligns with the austerity of the day.
Good Friday is marked by silence, stripped altars, and solemn stillness.Bare feet fit naturally into this language of sacred emptiness.
7. It is a silent homily.
Without words, it preaches:You are before a mystery. Slow down. Be humble. This is holy.
In the end, it is not about the feet, it is about the heart.
To remove the shoes is to recognise where one stands:at the foot of the Cross, on holy ground.
Fr. Dr. Okhueleigbe Osemhantie Ãmos is a priest of the Catholic Church and a Lecturer at CIWA, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
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