Pentecost

The  Orthodox Church keeps the remembrance of God ever before our eyes in a series of remembrances and commemorations.  They are participated in privately or corporately,  and are of a daily, weekly, or annual nature.

This Sunday is the commemoration of Pentecost in the Orthodox Church, the day that the Holy Spirit descended upon the Church as recorded in the second chapter of the Book of Acts.

Most icons of Pentecost show the apostles sitting, typically in a semicircle, which represents the unity of the Church.  At the top is another semicircle.  These  "tongues of fire"  represent the Holy Spirit  descending upon the individual members of the Church.  Christ, the invisible head of the Church, is represented by the vacant spot in the center of the apostles.  Unlike  Ascension icons, the apostles are sitting in an orderly manner.  This is representative of how their previous confusion has been replaced with the inner life of grace.  Like other icons, this one depicts events that transcend time and space:  Paul is shown, as well as the four evangelists who are holding their Gospels.  At the bottom is a stooped figure,  a representation of the whole world  once in darkness, but now lit by the light of apostolic teaching.

The great Serbian archimandrite and doctor of theology, Justin Popovich,  writes:

"The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, tells us all the truth there is about Him, about God in Him and man in Him and all that is given us through Him. All this immeasurably transcends everything that the human eye has ever seen, the ear has ever heard, or has ever entered into the heart of man.

On the holy Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven into the theanthropic Body of the Church and remains eternally in it as its life giving Soul.  This the day of the Holy Spirit, which began on the  holy Day of Pentecost, is ever present in the Church in the inexpressible fullness of all the divine gifts and life giving powers.  Everything in  the Church comes about through the Holy Spirit from the least to the greatest.  

When the priest blesses the censer before censing, he prays to the Lord Christ to  'send down the grace of the Holy Spirit'.   The clearest testimony that the entire life of the Church comes from the Holy Spirit is at the consecration of a bishop when God's indescribable miracle, holy Pentecost, is repeated and the fullness of grace is given.

In fact, every holy mystery and holy virtue is a little Pentecost; in them the Holy Spirit descends upon us, into us." 

There is no Church without Pentecost.  There are no Christians without Pentecost.  There is no true worship without Pentecost.  There is no Pentecost without the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Glory to God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit!