Today is Pentecost Sunday, a celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the birth of the church as we know it. Here is a little history lesson to start the day.
"Pentecost is derived from the Greek "pente", meaning fifty. The followers of "Christ", being devout followers of the Hebrew faith, had come to Jerusalem for the Festival of Shavuos: the fiftieth day after Passover (or Festival of Matzoh). Shavuos was a day to remember the giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai and a harvest festival of first fruits. Devout Jews would spend the night before Shavuos studying the laws and attending morning prayers before breaking their fast with Kiddush: a meal of bread and wine.ii Knowing this, it is small wonder that the followers in their seemingly drunken state were accused of having imbibed in too much new wine!" EchoedVoices.org
Origins of Pentecost
