What is the significance of Pentecost ? Well, is quite literally the moment that the church was born. Originally it was a Jewish celebration called the Feast of the Harvest that celebrated the early wheat harvest.  Before Jesus ascended to heaven and left his disciples he told them to go to Jerusalem and wait for the helper or the Holy Spirit that he promised he would send. You can read in the New Testament in Acts Chapter 2 what happened when the Holy Spirit came in a very dramatic way and filled the disciples. It is Peter who then adresses a crowd of thousands gathered for the Festival and empowered by the Holy Spirit he proclaims the gospel. The result of his message was that three thousand people were baptised. Pretty powerful stuff for an uneducated fisherman from Galilee!This is why Christians still celebrate Pentecost.

In St. Mary's on Sunday we will be celebrating this very special day with a service of Holy Communion at 10 am led by our Rural Dean the Rev. Ian Cardnal.