Why is Good Friday called "Good"? My coworker asked "Why is Good Friday called good?" when I mentioned that we have Good Friday off, and I unfortunately don't know the answer to the question. 

Is there a very obvious way to explain to someone why Good Friday is so good when it would seem as though it should be called "very bad horrible no good awful Friday"?
Normally, I prefer to author my own answer, but in this instance, Johnny Hart (of B.C. comic strip) nailed it so well, that I'm just going to repost his answer to this question.



For those who cannot see the image, it reads:


  Now, who can call "Good Friday" good?,
  A term too oft misunderstood,
  You who were bought by the blood of His cross
  You can call "Good Friday" good.




Update, based on the nature of the individual.


There was nothing "Good" about Good Friday for Jesus. He was humiliated, hurt, abandoned, and killed in horrible fashion.
But he willingly chose this for one simple reason - He loved humanity with his entire heart.  As such, he choose to suffer these "indignities" in order to give mankind what it sought.
In some fashion that theologians are still debating (Atonement? Satisfaction? Expiation? Christus Victor?), Jesus' death and subsequent resurrection gave us the ability to become heirs with God.  


Whether this was some legal impediment or moral ability, we don't know, but we do know this: Prior to the Crucifixion, man was unable to stand before God. Afterwards, we had Jesus to stand in our place, that we could be reconciled to him. To me, that's about as good as it gets!