By Sr. Nun Other

At our church, this past Sunday, Pentecost was commemorated by a profusion of color. Streaming swaths of red, orange, and yellow fabric hung from the church ceiling and embraced stone columns. Everywhere one looked — both inside and out — were reminders of the extraordinary energy that was and is Pentecost. It began as “Pentekostos,” a Greek word meaning fifty. This Judaic feast, some 1500 years old, was celebrated exactly fifty days after each Passover. God chose this same day for His new church to be born. And it wasn’t a quiet birth; it arrived amidst a noisy commotion of dramatic signs and sounds. The holy Spirit, whom Jesus called another Comforter, befriended us in “make no mistake about it” confidence and strength. The color of flame, of sunrise and sunset, he remains with us always.