Dates and Origins of Pentecost Sunday

Pentecost Symbol - Dove window St Peter's Basilica
Pentecost Symbol - Dove window St Peter's Basilica littlemisspurps / CC-by

Pentecost Sunday Dates in 2024, 2025 and 2026

Pentecost Sunday is celebrated at the following dates:

Pentecost is celebrated exactly fifty days after easter1. It celebrates the descent of the holy spirit onto the disciples1. The importance and celebration of this holiday vary widely between christian denominations as well as regions. Because it always falls on a sunday, most christian nations have this day off already. Some, however, consider the following monday as a public holiday, mainly in western european countries.

Origin

While the twelve disciples of Jesus were celebrated the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, or the feast of weeks commemorating God giving Moses the ten commandments on Mt. Sinai, the holy spirit descended onto them2. When this happened, the disciples of Jesus began speaking in tongues2. They adressed each person in the crowd in their own foreign language2. This was considered a miracle of God2.

Peter spoke to the crowd about salvation through baptism and the acceptance of Jesus Christ2. This day is still celebrated by Jews worldwide, whereas Shavuot is not celebrated as a separate holiday by most christians3. This event happened in the Upper Room, that is, in the location of the last supper4. The first celebration is also known as the birth of the christian church because it marks the fulfillment of the scriptureswith the return of Jesus Christ1.

Celebration

Mass is attended by several denominations of christianity and is heavily associated with baptism because when the lord dscended upon the disciples, 3,000 people were then baptized 2]. This was especially true in Northern Europe, where seasonal temperatures made this time of year more conducive to fully immersed baptisms as was the practice in early christianity5.

In some protestant communities, the nine days between ascension day and Pentecost are reserved for fasting6. For catholics, there are special Novenas (private or public prayers) held during those same nine days7.

References

  1. http://www.christianpost.com/news/10-things-you-should-know-about-pentecost-sunday-96192/

  2. http://christianity.about.com/od/biblestorysummaries/a/Day-Of-Pentecost.htm

  3. http://national.deseretnews.com/article/4557/what-is-pentecost-and-what-does-it-have-to-do-with-shavuot.html

  4. http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/201302/201302_038_loc_pentecost.cfm

  5. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Pentecost-Christianity

  6. http://www.pravoslavie.ru/english/47148.htm

  7. http://www.ecfvp.org/posts/trinity-sunday/