The fiftieth day after Pascha or Easter Sunday is celebrated as Pentecost with a feast. This is in memory of the coming down of the Holy Spirit to spread the gospel through the apostles of Christ. The story of Pentecost is also known as Whitsunday in English speaking regions.
The Blessed Trinity consists of the Divine persons of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit who had been sent as a guiding light to his believers by God. As the story of Pentecost goes, when Jesus returned to heaven after his Resurrection, his disciples felt sad, lonely and helpless. God then sent The Holy Spirit to Christ�s Apostles on the 50th day after this Ascension (also called Passover or Easter). The apostles then spread the message of love, support and guidance to the people on earth.
According to the orthodox Christian church, The Feast of Pentecost consists of a celebration of the Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostum. On this day, a Vespers service takes place with kneeling prayers during which bread and wine are consecrated as Christ�s body and blood.
The orthodox Christian church calculates the date of the Passover using the Julian calendar with the help of the Nicene formula adopted at the 1st Ecumenical Council in 325 AD. According to the Julian calendar, the celebration of Resurrection falls on Sunday as per the Scriptures. The orthodox Pentecost falls on the fiftieth day of the orthodox Passover.
There are 3 signs of the advent of the Holy Spirit. First was the sound of the blowing wind. Second the tongues of fire, which descended on the disciples to symbolize the delegation of power from Jesus to the Holy Spirit to guide the believers. The Third is the miracle of hearing the apostles spreading the message of the gospel to each listener in his native language.
According to the story of Pentecost, the wonder of the Pentecost was experienced by a large crowd. The Holy Spirit was the translator of the preaching so that everyone understood the message of love in his or her own language. This spread the gospel to one and all. Apostle Peter explained that these divine events were predicted by Joel and the exaltation of Jesus was prophesied by David. About 3000 of those who accepted the messages were baptized.
Pentecost is celebrated in different countries according to specific traditions. In Italy rose petals are scattered from the ceilings of the churches in memory of the fiery tongues. Here Whitsunday is called Pascha rosatum. In France, trumpets are blown to represent the sound of the blowing wind during the advent of the Holy Spirit.
In England, horse races are held during celebration. In Poland, people decorate their houses with greenery and Pentecost is called the Green Holiday. The orthodox churches of the east regard the week prior to Pentecost as an ecclesiastical feast and sing songs and psalms. The Jewish holiday of Shavout is also related to the story of Pentecost.