Pentecost Traditions

Pentecost is a celebration of the day that the first Christians were filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4). Pentecost, which means “fiftieth,” is celebrated 50 days after Easter and is the last day of the Easter season. It is also celebrated as the birthday of the Church!

Here are some ideas for celebrating Pentecost:

1. Discuss the Significance of Pentecost: This day marks the coming of the Holy Spirit and the “birthday” (the beginning) of the Church. This is a great time to discuss why the coming of the Holy Spirit was so important. I encourage you to check out Barbara Rainey’s article (from Family Life) on her Ever Thine Home website; she makes some insightful points about the reasons we have to celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit. Also, here are some verses to prompt discussion about who the Spirit is and why he came to dwell in believers:

Luke 12:11-12 — The Spirit teaches us what to say.
John 14:26 — He teaches us and reminds us of Jesus’ words.
Acts 1:8 — He gives us power.
Romans 15:16 — He sanctifies us.
1 Corinthians 6:19 — He dwells in us.
1 Corinthians 12: 7-11 — He gives us spiritual gifts.
Galatians 5:22-25 — He produces fruit in our lives.
Ephesians 1:13-14 — He is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance.
Titus 3: 4-6 — He gives us new birth and renews us.

2. Discuss the Connection to the Jewish Feast of Weeks: It is interesting to note how the events of the Easter season line up with Jewish Feasts — the Crucifixion (Passover), the Resurrection (Feast of First Fruits), and Pentecost (the Feast of Weeks, a celebration of the harvest). You can learn more about these fascinating connections at Hebrew4Christians.com (there is a detailed page about Pentecost, also called Shavuot). You can read more in an excellent book called The Feasts of the Lord by Howard and Rosenthal (links to Amazon). I also recommend the video “Shavuot” (links to YouTube) about the first Pentecost by Maoz Israel, a Messianic Jewish organization.

3. Read the Story of Pentecost: Read the account of Pentecost in Acts 2 or enjoy a good illustrated version like “The Coming of the Holy Spirit” (links to Amazon). The story is written as a poem by Arch Books:

4. Watch a Video Re-enactment of Pentecost: The below options can be found on my YouTube Pentecost Video Clip Playlist . . .

Acts of the Apostles: This clip is a word for word re-enactment of Acts 1:12-2:39.

A.D. Series: An excerpt from the popular NBC series shows a spectacular portrayal of the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit Comes: An animated clip about the events of Pentecost.

What’s in the Bible?: Made by the creator of Veggie Tales, this clip uses puppets and animation to answer the question “What is Pentecost?”

5. Sing a Hymn or Praise Song: The below options can be found on my YouTube Pentecost Songs and Hymns Playlist . . .

Breathe on Me (Hillsong)

Come Down, O Love Divine (Fernando Ortega)

Come Thou Fount (Fernando Ortega)

Consuming Fire (Hillsong)

Holy Spirit, You Are Welcome Here (Francesca Battistelli)

O For a Thousand Tongues (Hymn Charts)

Welcome Holy Spirit (Heart of Worship)

6. Enjoy Famous Artwork Depicting Pentecost: Many famous paintings of Pentecost are available to view on Wikimedia.

“Pentecost,” by Juan Bautista Maino, c.1612, Wikimedia.

7. Plan a Birthday Party: Pentecost is a celebration of the birthday of the Church. Every birthday party needs cupcakes or a cake! Kelly at The Careless Catholic created the “tongues of fire” cupcakes, and Jamie Jo at Lord, Make Me a Saint created the Pentecost cake.

8. Make a Craft: Heather at Cultivated Lives gives a tutorial for “flaming tongues” headbands; her family all wore them at their Pentecost party! I found the “campfire” idea on Pinterest and thought I could make a few to decorate the dinner table or my home.

9. Color and/or Enjoy Activity Pages: You can print coloring pages from Google that depict the first Pentecost. Two of my favorite pages are designed by Kristen at Drawn 2B Creative — click the images below to link to her site.

10. Play a Game: Barbara Rainey from Ever Thine Home explains how to set up a simple obstacle course and blindfold a volunteer who will need to follow your directions to get through the course; the goal is to learn the importance of listening to the Holy Spirit to avoid “bumps” in the course of life. Also, Kristen at Drawn 2B Creative shared a fun game idea — have your family take a “quiz” and try to guess what language is used in this “Happy Birthday in 30 Different Languages” video; since the disciples spoke in many languages during the first Pentecost, and since it is the birthday of the Church, this is a great game idea!

For more ideas, check out my Pentecost page on Pinterest.

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