An Excerpt from the Easter & Pentecost Witness
Interim Pastor's Reflections:

The Easter Season is rapidly progressing into the celebration of Pentecost. The word “Pentecost,” is derived from the Greek word for “fifty,” and was originally a festival celebrated by all Jews. Eventually, Pentecost came to have special significance for Christian Jews. Accordingly, it was the day (50 days after Jesus’ resurrection), that the Holy Spirit was poured out powerfully upon the fledgling church and many were added to their number.

After Pentecost, the dramatic movement of Jesus’ life from Advent through Christmas, Holy Week and Easter and finally to the Ascension and Birth of the Church subsides, giving way to a half-year of what is termed as the “Season of Pentecost,” or “Ordinary Time.” The phrase, Season of Pentecost suggests that this is a time full of energy. On the other hand, Ordinary Time depicts a time of routine. Certainly its position at the beginning of summer makes calling it “Ordinary Time” appears more descriptive of the reality of the season. We are ready for some time off from drama and intensity, ready to come and go and get plenty of rest. So we give the choir and the teachers in our Christian Formation program a break, and we go to one service on Sunday. This is as it should be. No one can run in high gear all the time. Even God rested after six days of creative work. So too should the summer months be a time of rest and relaxation!

This can happen in many ways. It can happen simply by ceasing to do what you were doing since Advent or perhaps since our programs get back to normal schedule in September. It can happen because you make a change in where you spend your time, like moving to a summer home or spending time at the beach. It can also happen because your children are at home every day instead of in school and your family life takes on a different shape. Then again, it may happen through a deliberate choice to do some reading, reflecting, and conversing at leisure about some important area of life: relationships, religious knowledge, or your interest in nature.

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The Ascension newsletter deadlines are the FIRST SUNDAY of each month. Family events & news, anecdotes or editorials, parish calendar events are welcome.