Pentecost: Difference between revisions

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The gift of the Holy Spirit was given to the 120 disciples in the Upper Room (Acts 2) on ''the Jewish feast of Pentecost (Shavuoth)''.   
The gift of the Holy Spirit was given to the 120 disciples in the Upper Room (Acts 2) on ''the Jewish feast of Pentecost (Shavuoth)''.   


In the Jewish calendar, the count of the week-of-weeks begins the day after Passover.  If Passover falls on a Tuesday in a particular year, Pentecost will fall on a Wednesday.
In the Jewish calendar, the count of the week-of-weeks begins the day after [[Passover]].  If Passover falls on a Tuesday in a particular year, Pentecost will fall on a Wednesday.


== Christian Liturgical Calendar ==
== Christian Liturgical Calendar ==
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* Death on Friday.
* Death on Friday.
* Resurrection on Sunday (the first day of the week; the Old Testament's "Day of the Lord" is Saturday, the seventh day).
* Resurrection on Sunday (the first day of the week; the Old Testament's "Day of the Lord" is Saturday, the seventh day).
* Gift of the Holy Spirit on the ''Jewish'' feast of Pentecost (Shavuoth).
* Gift of the Holy Spirit on the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shavuot ''Jewish'' feast of Pentecost (Shavuoth).]


Christians changed the starting point for counting fifty days from Passover to Easter Sunday.  Our feast of the Fiftieth Day (Pentecost) always falls on a Sunday.  It is a week of weeks after ''Easter,'' not a week of weeks after ''Passover.''
Christians changed the starting point for counting fifty days from [[Passover]] to Easter Sunday.  Our feast of the Fiftieth Day (Pentecost) always falls on a Sunday.  It is a week of weeks after ''Easter,'' not a week of weeks after ''Passover.''


This change in the way we calculate the Fiftieth Day introduces a discrepancy between the original Scriptural account (50 days after Passover, with day 1 being the day after Passover) and the liturgical system (50 days after Easter, with day 1 being Easter itself).
This change in the way we calculate the Fiftieth Day introduces a discrepancy between the original Scriptural account (50 days after Passover, with day 1 being the day after Passover) and the liturgical system (50 days after Easter, with day 1 being Easter itself).
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|-
|-
|  Thu
|  Thu
| Passover
|   0  —  [[Passover]]
|  
|  
| Last Supper = Passover
| Last Supper = [[Passover]]
| Last Supper NOT Passover!
| Last Supper NOT [[Passover]]!
|-
|-
|  Fri
|  Fri
|  1
|    1
|  
|  
| Good Friday = day after Passover
| Good Friday = day after [[Passover]]
| Preparation Day?
| Preparation Day before sundown
|-
|-
|  Sat
|  Sat
|  2
|    2
|  
|  
|  
|  
| Passover on Saturday
| [[Passover]] on Saturday
|-
|-
|  Sun
|  Sun
|  3
|    3
| 1
|   1 Easter Sunday
| Resurrection on Sunday
|   1 Resurrection on Sunday
| Resurrection, Ascension, Gift of Spirit
|style="background-color:#FFAA99"| Resurrection, Ascension, Gift of Spirit
|-
|-
|  Mon
|  Mon
|  4
|    4
| 2
|   2
|  
|   2
|  
|rowspan="49"|  
|-
|-
|  Tue
|  Tue
|  5
|    5
| 3
|   3
|  
|   3
|
|-
|-
|  Wed
|  Wed
|  6
|    6
| 4
|   4
|  
|   4
|
|-  3
|-
|  Thu
|  Thu
|  7 -- End Passover week
|    7 —  End Passover week
| 5
|   5
|  
|   5
|
|-
|-
|  Fri
|  Fri
|  8
|    8
| 6
|   6
|  
|   6
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|  Sat
|  9
|    9
| 7
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|  Sun
|  10
|  10
| 8
|   8
|  
|   8
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|  11
|  11
| 9
|   9
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|   9
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|  12
|  12
| 10
| 10
|  
| 10
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|  Wed
|  13
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| 11
| 11
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| 11
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|  Thu
|  14
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| 12
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| 12
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|  Fri
|  15
|  15
| 13
| 13
|  
| 13
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|  Sat
|  Sat
|  16
|  16
| 14
| 14
|  
| 14
|
|-
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|  Sun
|  Sun
|  17
|  17
| 15
| 15
|  
| 15
|
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|-
|  Mon
|  Mon
|  18
|  18
| 16
| 16
|  
| 16
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|  Tue
|  Tue
|  19
|  19
| 17
| 17
|  
| 17
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|  Wed
|  Wed
|  20
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| 18
| 18
|  
| 18
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|  Thu
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|  21
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| 19
| 19
|  
| 19
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|  Fri
|  Fri
|  22
|  22
| 20
| 20
|  
| 20
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|  23
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| 21
| 21
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| 21
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|  24
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| 22
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| 22
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|  25
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| 23
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|  26
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| 24
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| 24
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|  Wed
|  Wed
|  27
|  27
| 25
| 25
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| 25
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|  Thu
|  Thu
|  28
|  28
| 26
| 26
|  
| 26
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|  Fri
|  Fri
|  29
|  29
| 27
| 27
|  
| 27
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|  Sat
|  Sat
|  30
|  30
| 28
| 28
|  
| 28
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|  Sun
|  Sun
|  31
|  31
| 29
| 29
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| 29
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|  Mon
|  Mon
|  32
|  32
| 30
| 30
|  
| 30
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|  Tue
|  Tue
|  33
|  33
| 31
| 31
|  
| 31
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|  Wed
|  Wed
|  34
|  34
| 32
| 32
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| 32
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|  Thu
|  35
|  35
| 33
| 33
|  
| 33
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|  Fri
|  Fri
|  36
|  36
| 34
| 34
|  
| 34
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|  Sat
|  Sat
|  37
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| 35
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| 35
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|  Sun
|  Sun
|  38
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| 36
| 36
|  
| 36
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|  Mon
|  Mon
|  39
|  39
| 37
| 37
|  
| 37
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|  Tue
|  Tue
|  40
|  40
| 38
| 38
|  
| 38
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|  Wed
|  Wed
|  41
|  41
| 39
| 39
|  
| 39
|
|-
|-
|  Thu
|  Thu
|  42
|  42
| 40 -- Ascension Thursday
| 40 —  Ascension Thursday
| (1) Ascension  
| 40 (1) Ascension (on a Thursday)
|
|-
|-
|  Fri
|  Fri
|  43
|  43
| 41 (1)   
| 41 (1)   
| (2)   
| 41 (2)   
|
|-
|-
|  Sat
|  Sat
|  44
|  44
| 42 (2)   
| 42 (2)   
| (3)   
| 42 (3)   
|
|-
|-
|  Sun
|  Sun
|  45
|  45
| 43 (3)   
| 43 (3)   
| (4)   
| 43 (4)   
|
|-
|-
|  Mon
|  Mon
|  46
|  46
| 44 (4)   
| 44 (4)   
| (5)   
| 44 (5)   
|
|-
|-
|  Tue
|  Tue
|  47
|  47
| 45 (5)   
| 45 (5)   
| (6)   
| 45 (6)   
|
|-
|-
|  Wed
|  Wed
|  48
|  48
| 46 (6)   
| 46 (6)   
| (7)   
| 46 (7)   
|
|-
|-
|  Thu
|  Thu
|  49
|  49
| 47 (7)   
| 47 (7)   
| (8)   
| 47 (8)   
|
|-
|-
|  Fri
|  Fri
|  Pentecost 50
|style="background-color:#FFAA99"| 50  — Pentecost
| 48 (8)   
| 48 (8)   
| (9) Gift of the Spirit     
|style="background-color:#FFAA99"| 48 (9) Gift of the Spirit     
|
|-
|-
|  Sat
|  Sat
|  +1
|  +1
| 49 (9)   
| 49 (9)   
|
|  
|  
|-
|-
|  Sun
|  Sun
|  +2
|  +2
| day 50: Pentecost
|style="background-color:#FFAA99"| 50 —  Pentecost
|  
|  
| Jewish Pentecost
|}
|}


== John: the odd man out ==
Passover is dated by lunar cycles.  It can fall on any day of the week.  ''If'' we can rely on the tradition that Jesus died on a Friday, then John is identifying a different year from that specified in the synoptic gospels (Mt, Mk, Lk).
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontius_pilate Pontius Pilate] was procurator from 26 AD to 36 AD. That narrows things down somewhat; I think it has to be a historical fact that Jesus was crucified while Pontius Pilate was procurator of Judea. So that rules out one of my date calculations above.
[http://www.judaismvschristianity.com/Passover_dates.htm This page] gives a calculation of Passover dates from 26 AD to 34 AD. The author argues for Wednesday being the day of Passover. I'm inclined to disagree with that interpretation.
In the synoptics (Mt, Mk, Lk), Jesus dies the day AFTER Passover; in John, Jesus dies the day BEFORE passover. If our liturgical tradition has preserved the truth that Jesus died on a Friday, and if this fellow's calculations for the Passover dates are correct, then the synoptic year would be 34 AD and the Johannine year would be 33 AD.
A date of 33-34 AD seems nice to me--but it places a strain on Luke's estimate that Jesus was born in 4 BC, was "about 30" when He started His public ministry, that the public ministry lasted just a year or less (there is only one Passover in the synoptics), and that Jesus died the day AFTER the Passover meal. If we want to insist that Luke got the birth year right (in or before 4 BC) and that he is right about Jesus' age, then he has to be wrong about other aspects of the story.
I'm not too anxious about any of this. Our salvation comes from Jesus' priestly action of offering Himself as our Passover Lamb; we are saved by the blood of the Lamb, not by knowing what year He made this offering for us.


[[Category:Liturgical Year]]
[[Category:Liturgical Year]]

Latest revision as of 12:18, 10 December 2022

When was the first Pentecost?

"Pentecost" is from the Greek word for "fiftieth [day]."

It was a festival in honor of God's giving of Torah (the Law) on Mt. Sinai, fifty days after Passover night in Egypt.

In Hebrew, the name of the feast is "Shavuoth," meaning "weeks." Fifty days is essentially a "week of weeks." Seven weeks times seven days per week is forty-nine; but they add one day to that total, arriving at fifty, because the count includes the starting day.

Notice that the same phenomenon of adding one for the starting day turns up in the French phrase for a week: "huit jours" (eight days!). That, in turn, led to a Beatle's song called "Eight days a week."

The gift of the Holy Spirit was given to the 120 disciples in the Upper Room (Acts 2) on the Jewish feast of Pentecost (Shavuoth).

In the Jewish calendar, the count of the week-of-weeks begins the day after Passover. If Passover falls on a Tuesday in a particular year, Pentecost will fall on a Wednesday.

Christian Liturgical Calendar

There are a few fixed points in the Scriptures:

  • Death on Friday.
  • Resurrection on Sunday (the first day of the week; the Old Testament's "Day of the Lord" is Saturday, the seventh day).
  • Gift of the Holy Spirit on the Jewish feast of Pentecost (Shavuoth).

Christians changed the starting point for counting fifty days from Passover to Easter Sunday. Our feast of the Fiftieth Day (Pentecost) always falls on a Sunday. It is a week of weeks after Easter, not a week of weeks after Passover.

This change in the way we calculate the Fiftieth Day introduces a discrepancy between the original Scriptural account (50 days after Passover, with day 1 being the day after Passover) and the liturgical system (50 days after Easter, with day 1 being Easter itself).

Those who call the days after Jesus' Ascension the "Church's first novena" (nine days of prayer while waiting for the gift of the Holy Spirit) counted the days from the Ascension to the Jewish festival of Pentecost (fifty days after Passover). Liturgically, there are now nine days "between" Ascension Thursday and Pentecost Sunday.

Let's count to Fifty!

DOW Jewish count Christian liturgy Luke John
Wed -1 Preparation Day?
Thu   0 — Passover Last Supper = Passover Last Supper NOT Passover!
Fri   1 Good Friday = day after Passover Preparation Day before sundown
Sat   2 Passover on Saturday
Sun   3   1 Easter Sunday   1 Resurrection on Sunday Resurrection, Ascension, Gift of Spirit
Mon   4   2   2
Tue   5   3   3
Wed   6   4   4
Thu   7 — End Passover week   5   5
Fri   8   6   6
Sat   9   7   7
Sun 10   8   8
Mon 11   9   9
Tue 12 10 10
Wed 13 11 11
Thu 14 12 12
Fri 15 13 13
Sat 16 14 14
Sun 17 15 15
Mon 18 16 16
Tue 19 17 17
Wed 20 18 18
Thu 21 19 19
Fri 22 20 20
Sat 23 21 21
Sun 24 22 22
Mon 25 23 23
Tue 26 24 24
Wed 27 25 25
Thu 28 26 26
Fri 29 27 27
Sat 30 28 28
Sun 31 29 29
Mon 32 30 30
Tue 33 31 31
Wed 34 32 32
Thu 35 33 33
Fri 36 34 34
Sat 37 35 35
Sun 38 36 36
Mon 39 37 37
Tue 40 38 38
Wed 41 39 39
Thu 42 40 — Ascension Thursday 40 (1) Ascension (on a Thursday)
Fri 43 41 (1) 41 (2)
Sat 44 42 (2) 42 (3)
Sun 45 43 (3) 43 (4)
Mon 46 44 (4) 44 (5)
Tue 47 45 (5) 45 (6)
Wed 48 46 (6) 46 (7)
Thu 49 47 (7) 47 (8)
Fri 50 — Pentecost 48 (8) 48 (9) Gift of the Spirit
Sat +1 49 (9)
Sun +2 50 — Pentecost
Retrieved from "https://moleski.net/cacwiki/index.php?title=Pentecost&oldid=20486"