A dove and prayer for Pentecost

Pentecost

Most of us know Pentecost for the Holy Spirit descending on the Apostles after the Ascension of Jesus. It is that, but it also actually has much older roots, back to the book of Exodus.

The word Pentecost means “fifty” in Greek, and it was celebrated 50 days after Passover. It was one of three pilgrim feasts that required Jewish men to make a trip to Jerusalem. It was a harvest festival sometimes called the Feast of Weeks. A celebration commemorating when the people of Israel became the people of God, receiving the law of the covenant at the foot of Mt. Sinai way back in the time of Moses.

This happened in the book of Exodus. Exodus 34 specifically mentions the Feast of Weeks; however, Matthew Leonard has an excellent and expansive post on the topic which is well worth a read.

Fast forward to the New Testament. Jesus was crucified on Good Friday, and rose again on the third day Easter Sunday. if you’re curious how Friday to Sunday is three days, the answer is in the Jewish way of counting days.

40 days after Easter Sunday is the Ascension of Jesus, the book of Acts 1:3-9 recounts Jesus being taken up to heaven:

³ After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. ⁴ On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. ⁵ For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

⁶ Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

⁷ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

⁹ After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

Nine days later, Acts 2:1-4 takes place:

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Pentecost marked the 50th day (Remember the Jewish way of counting) since Easter. The Holy Spirit came, and is still with us today.

Obverse

The obverse of the medallion contains the text “Come Holy Spirit” above a dove with circles and lines radiating out.

The Holy Spirit

The Trinity is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. It is one of the hardest aspects of Christianity to understand. The Trinity is a mystery of faith, and as humans we cannot fully understand it. But that is ok. I don’t fully understand how aeroplanes work, but I have enough faith in the people who made it to get on one and believe it will get me to my destination.

We understand the persons of the Blessed Trinity subsisting within the inner life of God to be truly distinct relationally, but not as a matter of essence, or nature. Each of the three persons in the godhead possesses the same eternal and infinite divine nature; thus, they are the one, true God in essence or nature, not “three Gods.” Yet, they are truly distinct in their relations to each other.

Of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit is perhaps the hardest to understand. The Holy Spirit has appeared in a range of forms throughout the bible:

• Wind: Such as the Spirit of God hovering over the waters in Genesis
• A dove: As at Jesus’ baptism in Matthew.
• Fire: Such as the tongues of fire above the apostles at Pentecost (in Acts 2, as quoted above).

Lectio365 did a fascinating series of devotionals leading up to Pentecost, studying the various forms of the Spirit of God. I must say, the one which captured my imagination the most was the week they covered the Spirit of God as “wind”. I admit, I do now think of this whenever I am out and feel the wind, and know that God is with me.

The Holy Spirit has been called the manifestation of the love between the Father and the Son. As the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit reveals the Father to humanity and enables us to become like Christ.

Reverse

The reverse of the medallion has the text which continues the prayer, started with “Come Holy Spirit” from the other side:

Fill the hearts of the
faithful, and kindle in
them the fire of Your
Divine love. Send forth
Your spirit, and they
shall be created and
You shall renew the face
of the earth

There is a second verse to this prayer, not inscribed on this piece:

O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations, Through Christ Our Lord, Amen.

Novena

“Come Holy Spirit”, the prayer on the medallion, is used in the “Pentecost Novena“. The word novena is taken from “Novem,” the Latin word for nine. A novena is made up of nine days of prayer and meditation usually to ask God for special prayer requests or petitions.

Novenas are an ancient tradition that goes back to the days of the Apostles. Jesus told His disciples to pray together after His ascension into heaven, so they went to an upper room along with the Blessed Virgin Mary, (Acts 1:14) and joined constantly in prayer for nine days. These nine days of constant prayer by the Apostles at the direction of Jesus led up to Pentecost.

As the PrayMoreNovenas.com site indicates, there are other Novenas throughout the year, and which can be used whenever needed. Even if you aren’t in time to do a novena before Pentecost, it is always a good time to learn more about Prayer. And if it helps, I am only learning about Novenas as I write this just a few days before Pentecost.

I have learnt more about the Holy Spirit and about Pentecost in writing this piece, and recently through prayer and study. As mentioned, my favourite “image” is of how the Holy Spirit moves as wind at various places in the bible and I like how I’m prompted in that when I feel wind myself. There aren’t too many coins or medallions which depict Wind, though there are more which depict doves, or fire. What is your favourite?