Pentecost is a Greek word that means “fiftieth”. In the Christian Church, Pentecost refers to the 50th day after Jesus’ resurrection. When Jesus’ ascended to Heaven on the 40th day after His resurrection, He had promised His disciples that He will send them His Spirit, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.”(John 14:16-17). So, what exactly happened on Pentecost day?
All of the disciples and apostles (including Jesus female disciples and Virgin Mary) were gathered in one of the rooms of St. Mark’s house. Suddenly, a violent wind blew and with it came the divided tongues made of fire. One
tongue of fire sat upon the heads of each of the disciples and everyone in the room. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and were able to speak different languages! When the crowd heard them speaking joyfully, they were confused and thought that these disciples were merely drunk. Most
importantly, the Holy Spirit gave strength and power to the disciples. When Peter received the Holy Spirit, he immediately gave a moving sermon that caused 3000 people to also become believers of Christ. The Pentecost marks the birth of the Christian Church because after receiving the Holy Spirit, the disciples travelled the world and preached God’s word to everyone.
We also receive the Holy Spirit when we are baptized and anointed with Myron. For us, it is also like a new birth because that is when we become members of the Church and can start partaking of the Sacraments like Communion!
“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit” (Luke 2:4)