WHAT IS PENTECOST?
Pentecost is the great festival that marks the birth of the Christian church by the power of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost means "fiftieth day" and is celebrated fifty days after Easter.
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WHAT HAPPENED ON PENTECOST?
Ten days after Jesus ascended into heaven, the twelve apostles, Jesus' mother, and many other of His disciples gathered together in Jerusalem for the Jewish harvest festival that was celebrated on the fiftieth day of Passover. While they were indoors praying, a sound like that of a rushing wind filled the house and tongues of fire descended and rested over each of their heads. This was the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on human flesh promised by God through the prophet Joel (Joel 2:28-29). The disciples were suddenly empowered to proclaim the gospel of the risen Christ. They went out into the streets of Jerusalem and began preaching to the crowds gathered for the festival. Not only did the disciples preach with boldness and vigor, but by a miracle of the Holy Spirit they spoke in the native languages of the people present, many who had come from all corners of the Roman Empire. This created a sensation. The apostle Peter seized the moment and addressed the crowd, preaching to them about Jesus' death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins. The result was that about three thousand converts were baptized that day. (You can read the Biblical account of Pentecost in Acts 2:1-41).
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WHAT IS THE LITURGICAL COLOR FOR PENTECOST?
Red is the liturgical color for this day in the Roman/Latin Church. Red recalls the tongues of flame in which the Holy Spirit descended on the first Pentecost. The color red also reminds us of the blood of the martyrs. These are the believers of every generation who by the power of the Holy Spirit hold firm to the true faith even at the cost of their lives. Be sure to wear red to mass!
As an aside, the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches celebrate this feast with the color green to symbolize new life. They also decorate their homes and prayer spaces with green plants to remind them of this. Perhaps you can also decorate your home with new plants, or make a tree like we did here:
These spinners we a HUGE hit with the kids, they were so excited and worked hard to perfect their "spinning technique." (Don't worry, my lovely kiddo is really is happy in these pictures, she's just concentrating on spinning it! LOL)
I also like this coloring page.
For a quick and easy game, I love these memory cards. The page has 2 printables listed in alphabetical order called Disciples Memory Match 1 and 2. They have the apostles saying "hello" in all different languages! Adorable!
Last, but not least, I made these cupcakes as a treat for the kids. Pentecost is our "graduation" celebration as well this year. I used strawberry cake and vanilla frosting. On top, I cut a strawberry in half (the inside really looks like a flame!) and added a dab of orange (food coloring) frosting and orange sprinkles to add to the "fire" look! They were a big hit with the kids and grown-ups!
