Let Church Bells Ring: Pentecost Sunday
A blessed Pentecost, friends!
At the Ascension Jesus gave us, his followers, a great task -- to go to all the world, proclaiming with our lives and words the Gospel to all people, everywhere. At Pentecost, He empowered with His own Spirit to accomplish this task. At Pentecost, we get to act out with our everyday lives what the Holy Family embodied at Epiphany, the good news that the gift of Christ is for all people. All of the longing, doubt, grief, and the sins of the world we held up in the dark nights of Advent and Lent, all of the bright hope and relief that resurrected to life with the Risen Christ is channeled into this great movement of Spirit and Church at Pentecost.
The movement of Pentecost is lit for outward projection, the great current of Spirit moves us toward all people, in every nation, everywhere. Some of us send, some of us go, and all of us move toward the peoples of all nations. This is is - our one task, our one job until we are reunited with Christ.
Look: Sunbeams in Church, Roman Robroek - Source
Artist’s statement: “This is a photo of a stunning abandoned church. It is a single square room with parts (such as the pillars and floor) from the early 16th century. Other parts (such as the vaults) are from the 19th century. You can’t reach the church by car, and all of the houses surrounding the church have been abandoned as well.”
Listen: Church Bells, Gungor - Lyrics | YouTube | Spotify
I made a (sometimes surprising) curation of new songs for Pentecost! You can listen to it here: Holy Ghost: Pentecost 2022
Read: Genesis 11:1-9; Acts 2:1-21; Psalm 104:24-35v; 1 Corinthians 12:4-13; John 14:8-17
I’ll post daily readings for the week between Pentecost Sunday and Trinity Sunday.
Pray: Book of Common Prayer, Collect for Day of Pentecost
Almighty God, on this day, through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, you revealed the way of eternal life to every race and nation: Pour out this gift anew, that by the preaching of the Gospel your salvation may reach to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Do: The Church has long used the symbols of fire, wind, and water to represent the power given to us by the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Today would be a great day to light candles, host a bonfire or walk around a neighborhood seeking evidence of Christ’s light.