Pentecost
(Ancient Greek: pe?t???st? [?µ??a], pentekoste [hemera], "the fiftieth day") is one of the prominent feasts in the Christian liturgical year. The feast is also called Whitsun, Whitsunday, Whit Sunday, Whitsuntide, especially in the United Kingdom. Pentecost is celebrated seven weeks (49 days) after Easter Sunday, hence its name. [1] Pentecost falls on the tenth day after Ascension Thursday.
Historically and symbolically related to the Jewish harvest festival of Shavuot, which commemorates God giving the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai fifty days after the Exodus, Pentecost now also commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of Jesus as described in the Book of Acts, Chapter in the New Testament. For this reason, Pentecost is sometimes described as "the Church's birthday".
The Pentecostal movement of Christianity derives its name from this biblical event.
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PENTECOST TICKETS
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Biblical narrative
thumb in the
Rosary Garden of
San Carlos Seminary, Guadalupe Viejo,
Makati City,
Philippines.
The biblical narrative of Pentecost is given in the second chapter of the Book of Acts. As recounted in (
CEV):
On the day of Pentecost all the Lord’s followers were together in one place. Suddenly there was a noise from heaven like the sound of a mighty wind! It filled the house where they were meeting. Then they saw what looked like fiery tongues moving in all directions, and a tongue came and settled on each person there. The Holy Spirit took control of everyone, and they began speaking whatever languages the Spirit let them speak.
The apostles received the Holy Spirit and were miraculously enabled to go out into Jerusalem prophesying and speaking in languages that all the visitors to Jerusalem could understand as told further in : "Many religious Jews from every country in the world were living in Jerusalem ... they were hearing everything in their own languages." The noise and activity attracted a huge crowd and the Apostle Peter preached a sermon to the crowd with some effectiveness, as reports: "On that day about three thousand believed his message and were baptized."
Literary allusions
According to legend, King Arthur always gathered all his knights at the round table for a feast and a quest on Pentecost:
So ever the king had a custom that at the feast of Pentecost in especial, afore other feasts in the year, he would not go that day to meat until he had heard or seen of a great marvel.
[2]
Date
Pentecost is part of the
Moveable Cycle of the
ecclesiastical year. According to Christian tradition, Pentecost is always seven weeks after
Easter Sunday; that is to say, 50 days after Easter (inclusive of Easter Day). In other words, it falls on the eighth Sunday, counting Easter Day (see article on
Computus for the calculation of the date of Easter). Pentecost falls in mid- to late spring in the
Northern Hemisphere and mid- to late autumn in the
Southern Hemisphere.
Since the date of Easter is calculated differently in the East and West (see
Easter controversy), in most years the two traditions celebrate Pentecost on different days (though in some years the celebrations will coincide, as in 2007). In the West, the earliest possible date is May 10 (as in 1818 and 2285), and the latest possible date June 13 (as in 1943 and 2038). In the East, the earliest possible date is May 24, and the latest possible date June 27.
Public Holiday
Pentecost (Monday) is a public holiday in many
European countries including
Austria,
Belgium,
Cyprus,
Denmark,
Estonia,
France,
Germany,
Hungary,
Luxemburg,
(The) Netherlands,
Norway,
Poland,
Portugal,
Romania,
Spain and (most parts of)
Switzerland. In
Sweden it is no longer (as of
2005) a holiday, while
Italy is discussing whether to re-establish it (Senat: Nr.940; Kammer: Nr. 1647).
See also
- Pentecontad calendar
- Whit Monday
References
- Catholic Encyclopedia, http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15614b.htm
- Le Morte d'Arthur, Thomas Malory. http://books.google.com/books?id=Y0OOlnDFUM8C&printsec=frontcover&dq=le+morte+d%27arthur#PPA181,M1