Pentecost

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Dear Children,

Let us gather together and listen attentively, and learn about the feast of Pentecost.

The word “Pentecost” is a Greek word meaning 50th. The feast of Holy Pentecost is celebrated each year on the 50th day after the Great and Holy Feast of Pascha, and ten days after the Ascension of Christ.

Last week we celebrated the feast of Ascension. This is the icon of the Ascension. Christ ascended into heaven 40 days after His Resurrection. He went up in His body that was both God and Man. There were angels with Him and He was sitting on a cloud in His glory. Two angels said to the Theotokos and the Apostles, "Why do ye stand looking into the heaven? This Jesus, the One Who was taken up from you into the heaven, so shall He come in the manner ye beheld Him going into the heaven.” In the Creed we also say: “And He ascended into the heavens and sits at the right hand of the Father, and He shall come again in glory...”

The Church celebrates the Feast of the Ascension for eight days. The day before Pentecost is the Leave-Taking of Ascension.

Before Christ's Passion, before His crucifixion, He was preparing His disciples that He was going to leave them and was not always going to be with them. The disciples were worried. When He said, “in a short while I will leave you,” the disciples were not happy to hear this, and they cried. Christ saw them troubled and said to them, “Do not worry. I need to leave you; for unless I go away, the Paraclete, the Comforter, will not come to you. But if I go, I will send Him to you, and when that One, the Spirit of Truth, should come, He will guide you into all the truth.”

Before He ascended, He also told them, "Do not leave Jerusalem. Wait in Jerusalem for the coming of the Holy Spirit." So the disciples returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives and went to the upper room where they were staying.

This upper room in Jerusalem is where the Mystical Supper took place and Christ gave them the Mysteries, Holy Communion. In the same upper room—it was a room on the upper level of the house—Christ had appeared to the disciples on the day of the Resurrection.

Also, in that same upper room, eight days after His Resurrection, Christ appeared to Thomas and the other disciples. It was in that same upper room that the Holy Spirit descended on the day of Pentecost. You see, that upper room was a place where amazing things happened!

We can read about the Ascension in the Gospel of Luke and in the first chapter of the Acts of the Apostles. In the second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, St. Luke tells us about the descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Let us read from the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 2, verses 1 through 13. Pay attention to how the iconographers depict in the Pentecost icon what is written there in the Gospel.

And while the day of Pentecost was being fulfilled, they were all with one accord in the same place. And suddenly there came to be a sound out of the heaven, like as of a violent wind borne along, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues, as if of fire, being distributed; and it sat upon each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other tongues, even as the Spirit was giving them to utter. And there were Jews abiding in Jerusalem, pious men, from every nation of those under the heaven. And the report of this having arisen, the multitude came together and was confounded, because they were hearing, each one of them, speaking in his own dialect. And they were all amazed and wondering, saying to one another, “Behold, all these who are speaking are Galileans, are they not? And how do we each hear in our own dialect in which we were born? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and those who dwell in Mesopotamia, also Judea and Cappadocia, Pontos and Asia, also Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt, and the parts of Libya which are in the region of Cyrene, and the Romans, both Jews and proselytes, who sojourn here, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the magnificent works of God.” And they were all amazed and were in doubt, saying to one another, “What doth this wish to be?” And others, mocking, were saying, “They have been filled with sweet new wine.”

We read that they were all gathered together. There were twelve disciples, because Mathias had replaced Judas. However, it was not just the twelve. There were 120 people there, including the Theotokos. See, this is the house. There in the upper room, they are all close to each other, gathered together. They hear a strong wind, but it wasn't the kind of wind that makes the trees move and the leaves move, it was a different kind of wind, and the sound of the wind was heard all over the city and they went there to see what this wind was, where was it coming from. Besides hearing a violent wind, what else happened? What else did they see happening in the upper room? What did we just read in the Gospel?

Above the heads of the Apostles, the Holy Spirit in the form of tongues of fire descended on the Apostles. The Holy Spirit came down into the world first to the Apostles, and then from the disciples to everyone who has been baptised, and 2000 years later, it has been given to us too, to all of us.

When does the Holy Spirit come down on us? We might not see it happen, but we know. In what sacrament does it come down on each individual one of us? It happens after our baptism when we are Chrismated. During Chrismation, the priest crosses the newly-baptised person on the forehead, the eyes, the hands, the feet, and the back. With each crossing, he says, “The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit, Amen." At that moment, in a mystical way, the Holy Spirit gives grace to the newly baptised person and they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Fathers of the Church call the Chrismation that happens at our baptism our personal Pentecost. We receive the sign of the Holy Spirit, and we receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

If we did not sin, we would have these gifts still working within our hearts. But because, even when we're little, we begin to do little sins, and when we get older, the sins get bigger and bigger, this grace is covered because of our sins. Saint Paisios of the Holy Mountain said that when we sin, we throw dirt on top of the grace that we received at our baptism and chrismation. We throw impurities and dirt. It's the sins and the passions that we do that cover and hide the grace that we've been given. When we realize that we have lost this first grace of the Holy Spirit, Christ gives us the mystery of repentance and confession. In confession we take off all the dirt and garbage that we've put on our souls. Through confession, we take it off of our heart, our heart is cleansed, and the Holy Spirit begins to shine again.

Our Church has a very beautiful prayer to the Holy Spirit. We say it in all the services of our Church, and it is good for us to learn it and say it every day. Often students will say it before beginning their studies. "Heavenly King, O Comforter, the Spirit of truth, Who art everywhere present and fillest all things, O Treasury of every good and Bestower of life: come and dwell in us, and cleanse from every stain, and save our souls, O Good One.”

The Holy Spirit is God. The Holy Spirit is the third person of the Trinity. Jesus called the Holy Spirit “the Comforter.” He told the disciples, "Don't worry that I'm leaving you. The Comforter will come.” The Holy Spirit loves us, and follows us, and strengthens us, and helps us, and comforts us. Saint Paul says the Holy Spirit prays within our hearts to the Heavenly Father. You see, everyone who has been baptised, what a great help we have! We have been chrismated and received the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

So we have the historical events of Pentecost that took place 50 days after the Resurrection of Christ, in the upper room, with the disciples. And then we have the personal Pentecost of each one of us when we are baptised and chrismated. In the Tradition of the Church we have another Pentecost for those who are being ordained. When someone becomes a deacon or a priest or a bishop, the Holy Spirit descends there too, with the grace of the ordination.

In this icon of Pentecost, you see a seat in the center that is empty. This is the seat for Christ. We may not see Christ, but He is with us. He said to His disciples before His Ascension, “I will be with you always until the end of the age.” Christ is with us now in another way, not with His earthly body, but in the body of Christ, our Church. Pentecost is the birth of the Church and the icon of the feast always includes a seat for Christ. For us Orthodox Christians, the head of the Church is Christ. For the Roman Catholics, their head is the pope. See what a big difference there is? A person cannot be the head of the Church. Only the God-man is the head of the Church.

Here is the ceiling of the upper room. The Holy Spirit is coming down continuously, again and again. Since that day of Pentecost, the grace of the Holy Spirit has not stopped coming down. See how bright it is? It is heaven, where God and the angels are.

This center section of the icon represents the Church.

And down at the bottom of the icon in the black color is an elder who represents the world. Why is it dark there and bright at the top? Why isn't it painted black at the top and bright at the bottom? Do you remember what the brightness means? The brightness is the Holy Spirit, and in the world those who do not know Christ, and have not been baptised, do not have the light of the Holy Spirit. After our baptism, when we are received into the Church, we receive the light of the Holy Spirit. The bottom of the icon is open to the world. People are always coming to Christ and being baptised and becoming members of the Church, the body of Christ.

There are three levels in this icon. At the bottom is the world which is not yet baptised and does not have the light of grace, the grace of the Holy Spirit. In the middle is the Church with the Mysteries. The Church is the receptacle of the Holy Spirit. At the top is the spiritual world, the Heavenly Church, with the grace of the Holy Spirit.

Now let’s turn our attention to another icon below.

This is an icon of the first Ecumenical Council, which happened in the year 325. We celebrated this council last Sunday.

Here is St. Constantine the Great. He is the emperor. He called all the bishops from all over his empire and they gathered in the city of Nicea. Here, at the First Ecumenical Council, the first seven articles of the Creed were established.

Here you see the Pentecost icon next to the icon of the First Ecumenical Council. In both icons people are seated on the left and on the right. At the first Ecumenical Council, there are no Apostles alive anymore, but there are the successors of the Apostles, the Fathers and bishops of the Church. The Emperor is also there. In both icons you see a place for Christ, a seat in the center where no one is sitting. Christ is present in his mystical body.

Look at the place of Christ in the icon of the First Ecumenical Council. We don't see Christ, but in His place is the Gospel. Do you see the Cross above His seat? Do you see the candles? The candles represent the light of the Holy Spirit.

At the bottom of the icon in the darkness, what do we see? In the Pentecost icon we saw a figure representing the world, but here in this icon, the person in the darkness is Arias. He preached and taught heretical things. Arias taught things about Christ that were not true. He said that Christ was not God, but what did all the Church Fathers say?

“I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible;

And in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only-begotten, begotten of the Father before all ages; Light of Light, true God of true God; begotten, not made; being of one essence with the Father; by Whom all things were made;

Who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from the Heavens, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man;

And was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered and was buried;

And arose again on the third day according to the Scriptures;

And ascended into the Heavens, and sitteth at the right hand of the Father;

And shall come again, with glory, to judge both the living and the dead; Whose Kingdom shall have no end;

And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life; Who proceedeth from the Father; Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; Who spake by the Prophets;

In One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.

I look for the resurrection of the dead,

And the life of the age to come. Amen.”

We confess that Jesus is God.

We see in the icon of the First Ecumenical Council that Arius is bound with chains. He taught heresy and refused to repent. Christ says that all sins can be forgiven except blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. He who does not believe correctly in the person of Christ, in the Trinity, if the person does not repent, if he continues to sin in this way, and to teach people that what he's saying is true, this is called blasphemy. He is in hell because he refuses to repent, and refuses to change what he's teaching.

St. Spyridon was at the First Ecumenical Council. You can recognize St. Spyridon in the icon because of the cap he wore. It was a woven cap. Through a miracle, St. Spyridon showed that the Trinity is three persons but one God. St. Athanasius taught this in his theology and was a great saint of the Church who wrote a lot. St. Spyridon was not educated like St. Athanasius, but St. Spyridon had the Holy Spirit. He took up a tile and said, “This is the way the Holy Trinity is: In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit…” and out of his hand came a flame of fire, and water, and in his hand there remained the dirt. In the same way, the Trinity is three in one.

As the Prophets have seen, as the Apostles have taught, as the Church has received, as the Fathers have set forth in dogmas, as Grace has shown forth, thus do we preach Christ as our True God.

The Monday after Pentecost is also the day of the Holy Spirit.

We see the Holy Spirit in other icons as well. In the icon of the Annunciation, the Holy Spirit is drawn as a light shining on Panagia. In order for God to become incarnate, to become man, what happened? What do we say in the Creed? How did it happen? As it says in the Creed, Christ “came down from the Heavens, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man.”

At the baptism of Christ, for the first time in the history of the world, the three persons of the Holy Trinity are revealed. The Son is being baptized, the voice of the Father is heard—and of course you can't draw his voice, but we can see the hand of God the Father blessing His Son—and the Holy Spirit is present in the form of a dove. God the Father says, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

The prophet and Forerunner John the Baptist had baptized many people. He had been informed by God that when he should see the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove on the person being baptized that this would be the Messiah. He sees the Holy Spirit, and he hears the voice of the Father. He was a God-seer.

Here is another icon of the baptism of Christ. Do you see the Trinity? The Son is being baptized as a man, the Holy Spirit appears in the form of a dove, and the Father’s voice bears witness saying, "This is my beloved Son.” Remember this: The first time the Trinity was revealed was at the baptism of Christ.

The second revelation of the Trinity was at the Transfiguration of Christ. What happened at the Transfiguration? Forty days before his Crucifixion, Christ took three of His disciples, Peter, James and John, to Mt. Tabor, and there He was transfigured. He revealed His Divine nature to them as much as they were able to bear. Again, the voice of the Father was heard saying, “This is my beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased." The light they saw was not like any light we see on earth. It was the Uncreated Light, the presence and energy of the All-Holy Spirit. This is the second time that the Holy Trinity was revealed.

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In the Old Testament, the Holy Trinity was not revealed because people were not yet ready to understand how God is both three and one. Because the Jews lived among idolaters (people that worshipped false gods) God gave them prototypes of the Holy Trinity. A prototype is like a foretelling.

One such prototype of the Trinity in the Old Testament is in the book of Genesis. Three angels who looked exactly the same appeared to Abraham, and Abraham served them. He showed them hospitality, and the holy Fathers and hymnographers of the Church say that these three angels were a type of the Holy Trinity. Do you see Abraham?

This icon painted by Andre Rublov, a well-known iconographer, does not have Abraham and Sarah in it, but just the three angels. These angels represent the mystery of the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

At the second Ecumenical Council, which took place in 381, the articles about the Holy Spirit were written. There were heretics at that time who taught that the Holy Spirit was not God. Saint Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian, St. Gregory of Nazianzus, and St. Gregory of Nyssa were saints who had seen God. These Fathers of the Church had the Holy Spirit within their hearts, they theologized, and on the basis of the texts of these Fathers, the eighth article of the creed was written: “And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of life; Who proceedeth from the Father; Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; Who spake by the Prophets.” What are we confessing here? That the Holy Spirit is God, glorified and worshipped with the Father and the Son.

It is the same Holy Spirit which illumined the Prophets to speak their prophecies. In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit spoke through the prophets. Does anyone know the name of a prophet? Moses, Elias, Isaiah, David, Daniel, Ezekiel, Jeremiah… and there are numerous more… and John the Forerunner was the last prophet. The Holy Spirit spoke through all these prophets.

The Holy Spirit spoke through the Apostles when the Holy Spirit descended on them at Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit also spoke through the Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils, and now the Holy Spirit speaks through the Saints. All the Saints have within them the Holy Spirit.

It is good to learn the prayer to the Holy Spirit: "Heavenly King, O Comforter, the Spirit of truth, Who art everywhere present and fillest all things, O Treasury of every good and Bestower of life: come and dwell in us, and cleanse from every stain, and save our souls, O Good One.”

On Sunday of Pentecost we will celebrate how the Holy Spirit came down into the world. In the afternoon on the day of Pentecost, everyone in church is going to kneel down three times. Everyone—the older people, the younger people, everyone—is going to kneel down, and very quietly the priest will say three prayers. Even if you don't understand what he's saying, know that he is saying a prayer to the Holy Spirit. And on the third time we kneel, we will pray for all the people who have died—all the departed, parents, friends, grandparents, everyone. At that moment, when we kneel down for the third time, I'm asking you to please pray for all the people you know who have died. And if you don't have anyone in your family who has died, ask Christ to give rest to every single person who has ever died.

The week after Pentecost—the entire week—will be a celebration of Pentecost and we will chant this hymn: “Blessed are you O Christ our God, who showed the fisherman to be most wise, by sending down upon them the Holy Spirit and through them You drew the whole world into Your net, O Lover of man, glory to You.”