Easter, Ascension and Pentecost

The month of May incorporates Ascension Day (14th May) and Pentecost (24th May). In the church's year, Eastertide continues until Pentecost. The day of Pentecost is seen as the culmination of the Easter season. In the bible, we are told that Pentecost occurred fifty days after Jesus' resurrection and ten days after his ascension. Pentecost is derived from the Greek word for "fifty." The day celebrates the Holy Spirit's descent upon the disciples following Jesus' ascension. We remembered the 80th anniversary of D-Day two years ago. Easter is like the D-Day landings, which gave the Allies a foothold in Europe. Jesus’ resurrection gives us a glimpse of our eternal destiny. Pentecost marks the power to move forward with God’s help to change the world from bad to good. The D-Day landings did not bring victory, but they created a beachhead to fight forward toward that victory.

Pentecost is ranked as the third most important Christian festival. In second place comes Christmas, and in first place is Easter. I do wonder if Christmas is perceived as the most important. Certainly, in commercial terms, Christmas is much bigger than Easter. Pentecost is not ranked commercially. I would guess it is eclipsed by Mothering Sunday! This is only the halfway point of the Lenten observance, with little or no religious significance.

In comparison, Pentecost is not really marked or remembered. Looking back at its history, we can see it was much more important. By the seventh century, Pentecost had become such an important festival that the whole week following was set aside to observe it. The law courts were not in session, and most work was prohibited. By the 12th century, this was limited to just three days. In most European countries, the Monday (25th May) after Pentecost is still observed as a holiday. In our country, the link with the bank holiday was broken in 1967, and it was formally replaced by a fixed "spring holiday" on the last Monday in May in 1971. However, this year the fixed bank holiday coincides with the religious bank holiday. In many calendars, the day is listed as "Whitsun." This comes from the phrase "White Sunday" and refers to the practice of newly baptised people appearing in their white baptismal garments on that day.

In the Jewish calendar, the 50th day after the Sabbath of Passover week marked the beginning of the harvest and a festival celebrating its fruits. This was the second-most important festival for the Jews. (The most important was Passover.) This explains why so many people from all over the Roman Empire were in Jerusalem for the first Pentecost. On the first Pentecost, we are told that 3000 people believed after Peter’s first speech! An improbable beginning for any preaching career, yet with God’s help, many improbable things can happen!

Rev. Martin Wood. The Rectory, Church Lane, Cheriton Bishop EX6 6HY 01647 24119 (Tuesday to Sunday) revwood163@gmail.com