Pentecost
by Andy Bahbah (Jun. ’01)
TROPARION OF THE FEAST OF PENTECOST
Blessed art Thou, O Christ our God, Who hast revealed the fishermen as most wise, having sent upon them the Holy Spirit, and through them Thou hast fished the universe, O Lover of Mankind, glory to Thee.
Greetings in the Name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! A very joyous hymn for us, the Troparion contains extreme meaning for one of the greatest festivals the Orthodox Church celebrates called Pentecost. The feast is on the seventh Sunday after the Resurrection of Christ, or “Pascha.” The Orthodox Church celebrates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. The giving of the Holy Spirit occurred fifty days after the Resurrection. In Greek, “Pentekoste” means “Fiftieth Day.”
In the icon the Disciples are shown gathered in the same Upper Room where they shared the Last Supper with Christ. In the center of the group is the Book of the Gospels. This place of honor formally occupied by the actual physical Christ is now occupied by the Book of the Gospels, which the Holy Spirit has made the spiritual presence of Christ in the world. A crowned figure seated in the presence of the Disciples holds in a cloth twelve scrolls. This represents the reception by the entire world of the preaching of the twelve Disciples.
The event is described in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter two. We hear read during Liturgy:
When the day of Pentecost was fully come, the twelve Apostles were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance…Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotomia, and in Judea, and Cappadocia, in Pontos, and Asia, Phygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in parts of Libya about Cerene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Creatans and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed (Acts 2:1-12).
Pentecost marks the first Evangelical movement of the Church as a whole. Christ has descended, died, resurrected, and ascended. The Apostles of Christ at that point were sent to “preach the good news.” As we celebrate this feast of our Church, let us go as the Apostles with flaming tongues of fire, and let the Holy Spirit come into us. Let our light shine in doing God’s wonderful works as “fishermen.” Let us fulfill the wonderful glory and preach the Gospel with our words, and more importantly, with our actions. May God bless us always in His name and look towards His Second Coming.
