On this day in 1614 American Indian Pocahontas married English colonist John Rolfe in Virginia.
In 1792 U.S. President George Washington cast the first presidential veto. The measure was for apportioning representatives among the states.
In 1955 Winston Churchill resigned as British prime minister.
And in 1984 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Los Angeles Lakers) became the all-time NBA regular season scoring leader when he broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record of 31,419 career points.
On this day in 1812 the territory of Orleans became the 18th U.S. state and would become known as Louisiana.
In 1841 U.S. President William Henry Harrison, at the age of 68, became the first president to die in office. He had been sworn in only a month before he died of pneumonia.
In 1917 the U.S. Senate voted 90-6 to enter World War I on the Allied side.
In 1945 during World War II, U.S. forces liberated the Nazi death camp Ohrdruf in Germany.
In 1968 Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated at the age of 39.
And in 1969 Dr. Denton Cooley implanted the first temporary artificial heart.
On this day in 1776 George Washington received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Harvard College .
In 1882 the American outlaw Jesse James was shot in the back and killed by Robert Ford for a $5,000 reward. There was later controversy over whether it was actually Jesse James that had been killed.
In 1942 the Japanese began their all-out assault on the U.S. and Filipino troops at Bataan.
And in 1996 Unabomber suspect Theodore Kaczynski was arrested.
“There is a sacredness in tears. They are not a mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition and of unspeakable love.”
1 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.
2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.
5 And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
6 And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.
7 But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.
8 And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulchre; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid.
9 Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.
10 And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.
11 And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.
12 After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.
13 And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them.
14 Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
Today is a happy, yet solemn day. A day for reflection, and a day for hope as well. I’m always sad that it had to be this way, such a harsh and brutal “end.” Yet I see it’s really just the beginning. I see the need we have for it, and that it was God’s plan. It had to be this way. Jesus had to pay the price for man’s sin. Only He could wash them clean and offer a way to forgiveness. And I’m very thankful that He did, and that He advocates on behalf of the likes of me.It is the greatest gift of all. So have a Good Friday! 🙂
On this day in 1774 Britain passed the Coercive Act against Massachusetts to quell “commotions and insurrections” in the Colonies.
In 1885 the Salvation Army was officially organized in the U.S.
In 1917 during World War I the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was founded.
In 1933 in Germany, the Nazis ordered a ban on all Jews in businesses, professions and schools.
And in 1979 a major accident occurred at Pennsylvania’s Three Mile Island nuclear power plant. A nuclear power reactor overheated and suffered a partial meltdown.