He is also included to show that he was in complete harmony with the other Apostles. A 17th century description reads, “The man sits in a dark place, since the whole world had formerly been without faith; he is bowed down with years, for he he was made old by the sin of Adam; his red garment signifies the devil’s blood sacrifices; the royal crown signifies sin, which ruled the world [as a tyrant]; the white cloth in his hands with the twelve scrolls means the twelve Apostles, who brought light to the whole world with their teaching.” [1]. Illustration of Christian icon. The twelve symbolize that there are a diversity of gifts given by the one Spirit of God. A violent wind filled the house: breath or … As he said before ascending, “Behold, I am with you even to the end of the age.”  He continues to keep that promise, being invisibly present in the church, guiding us through the Holy Spirit. The group of twelve represent the Church, not just those mentioned in the book of Acts as being with the others on the day of Pentecost. 5 out of 5 stars. Ouspensky later writes that this icon is “an image of the inner life of the Church.”  How so? FAQs, https://orthodoxwiki.org/index.php?title=Pentecost_icon&oldid=112548. Trinity sunday. Pentecost - The Christian feast day of Pentecost Handmade wood icon on plaque Orthodox ,Catholic, Roman,Byzantine,Coptic, Home Decor Art. Below are a few reflections on the symbolism and meaning of this icon. It’s the only Levitical Feast Day between the three spring feasts (Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits) and the three in the fall (Rosh Hashanna, Yom Kippur, … Christian church concept. Jeremiah. However, the Feast of Pentecost is not only the commemoration of an historical event, but a … Pentecost (πεντηκοστή [‘ημέρα], pentekostē [hēmera]) meaning "the 50th day" in Greek), also called Whitsun, Whitsunday, or Whit Sunday in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking areas, is a holiday and season in the Christian liturgical year. Pentecost Sunday. Pentecost: The Descent of the Holy Spirit. Pentecost is significant in both the Old and New Testaments. Add to. From shop HolySpiritArt. The inverse perspective prevents the apostles who are near the back of the semicircle from … Pentecost Sunday. Something that stumps many people: who is the kingly figure at the bottom of the Pentecost icon? The English word “Pentecost” is a transliteration of the Greek word pentekostos, which means “fifty.”. Why is the head of the semicircle of Apostles empty? The icon of Pentecost teaches us much more than the fact that the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles in tongues of fire. The rays are pointing toward the Apostles, and the "tongues of fire" are seen descending upon each one of them signifying the descent of the Holy Spirit. The icon has the Apostles sitting, as on Mount Sion, representing the first Church community, the beginning of the Christian Church. The Bible records the Pentecost in Acts 2:1-13. It is usually displayed for veneration, at the center of the church, on the Sunday of Pentecost. As the passover feast celebrated the exodus of the Israelites from the slavery of Egypt, so Pentecost celebrated God’s gift of the ten commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai. This page has been accessed 39,613 times. So often when we think of the Holy Trinity, we prepare ourselves for an onslaught of complicated concepts. 4. The word Pentecost is from the Greek word “pentekostos” and it’s literally a translation of the As we reflect on the icon prayerfully, we participate in the reality represented by the Pentecost icon. HolySpiritArt. Pentecost was an initial harvest feast, where the Jews were to offer to the Lord the first fruits of the new grain. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Pentecost fulfills Jesus' promise to send the "Counselor" and "Spirit of Truth" in John 16-5-15. There are keys floating in the abyss below, which symbolizes that he has entered and conquered both death and Hades. 2. 23:15-21). Pentecost Sunday is the day when Christians around the world celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit. The event is recalled in Acts 2:1-4. The Pentecost icon, displayed for veneration on Pentecost Sunday, depicts the events described in the Book of Acts, serving not just as a historical record, … This page was last edited on October 29, 2012, at 18:24. Pentecost is also known as "the birthday of the Church". The Greek word means “fifty” and refers to the fifty days that have elapsed since the wave offering of Passover. Because it is the seat of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is invisibly present. There is no sign of appearing drunk, which they were accused of that morning. Pentecost Icon Explanation. The inverse perspective prevents the apostles who are near the back of the semicircle from being painted as smaller, which would happen in the rendering of most normal paintings. Paul, Luke, and Mark were not part of the twelve disciples, but because they played a significant role in preaching the Gospel to all humanity they are depicted as being in unity and harmony with the twelve. It shows that Christ sits at the head of our Church, invisibly guiding us; we have descended directly from the Apostles; we have been given the gift of the Holy Spirit by God through the Apostles; we celebrate our own participation in Pentecost through Chrismation and the mysteries of the Church because these things transcend time and space; while we always work toward harmony and unity with one another, we have a diversity of gifts and talents and there is no forced uniformity; people of all nations, tribes, and tongues are united together in the new spiritual building of the Church that transforms us from being lowly earthly creatures to heavenly ones. 7. In many icons the four evangelists are depicted holding books and the remainder are holding scrolls. Today, we recognize this day as Pentecost, which is the Greek name for it. Icon of Descent of the Holy Spirit, Pentecost - handmade religious wood icon, gilded, beautiful gift, 4 sizes to choose. The Karaites explained the shabbath of Leviticus 23:15 as pointing to the Sabbath of the paschal week and therefore always celebrated Pentecost on Sunday. Winnie Varghese explains the origins of Pentecost, one of the major feast days in the church, and what it means for us today. Clearly, no one else can be depicted here. The gift to the Church. The Rev. Receive notifications of future blog posts! But God scattered them with different languages (tongues). Instead, before making attempts at understanding the Trinity, we shoulddesire the Trinity. In the same way, each of the twelve Apostles are seated in slightly different ways: there is harmony, but not conformity. On the left, starting from the top, we have Peter, Matthew, Luke, and other disciples. Hence, there is an attempt to associate the elder from the icon to King David. The golden bars by his feet are the gates of Hades, which he has broken and torn apart. Yet the main aspect of the Icon – to which all eyes are inevitably drawn – is the image of Christ in Glory holding the pure soul of Mary in His arms, shown as an infant. There was wind... Luke tells of three distinct experiences. Pentecost comes 10 days after the Ascension of Jesus Christ. As with all icons of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Pentecost icon teaches theology and brings us into the reality of the event depicted. Archpriest David Moser[1] explains: “This icon not only visually tells the story of the descent of the Holy Spirit in tongues of flame upon the apostles, but it also teaches us the … Of course, Paul was not present during this event, but the reality of Pentecost transcends time and space, and in some sense, Paul was later mystically joined to this moment. It is usually displayed for veneration , at the center of the church, on the Sunday of Pentecost . They form a semicircle to express the unity of the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ. However, that was quickly replaced by Cosmos, who personifies all people of all nations. It is the 50th day after Easter (and the 10th day after Ascension Thursday). The day of Pentecost was the fulfillment of the words Jesus spoke to His disciples regarding the Holy Spirit of God, which is represented by wind and fire throughout the Bible. In the most ancient Pentecost icons, the crowd from Acts two was depicted at the bottom. 5. The books symbolize the writings of the four gospels, the scrolls show that even those who did not write lengthy gospels still proclaimed the gospel message to the world. Also, the building that the Apostles were in, is shown as background. 3. Pictured in the icon is Paul, who became an Apostle of the Church and the greatest missionary. (813) 813 reviews. Holy spirit. ArtChristiana 5 out of 5 stars (70) $ 36.23. 1. $17.91 FREE shipping. View all posts by Dn. Fifty Days Later—The Feast of Weeks or Harvest. Please consider supporting OrthodoxWiki. He is bent over to show he was made old by the sin of Adam. This one person represents the whole world that had formerly been without the light of faith. On Easter, Christians celebrate the Resurrection – the belief the Jesus rose from the dead, a sign of the promise of resurrection given to all God’s people. The four Evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, are shown holding the not yet written books of the Gospel. There is also no discord or chaos, which contrasts with some of the Western paintings of this event, which can be a bit dramatic. This icon is used with the traditional Pentecost icon. Favorite. The icon is not a depiction of the historical events of Pentecost, but it signifies that this is a great event for all time. For the feast of Pentecost the icon of the Holy Trinity, the three angelic figures who appeared to Abraham, is placed in the center of the church for veneration. Pentecost - The Descent of the Holy Spirit In the Old Testament Pentecost was the feast which occurred fifty days after Passover. 6. The Pentecost icon depicts the descent of the Holy Spirit onto the Church. The Apostles sit orderly, unlike the Ascension icon where they seem confused. Life was brought to Adam's physical body when God breathed into his nostrils ( Genesis 2:7 ). While it is not a typical iconographic meaning, the towering architecture here reminds me of the Tower of Babel. But it is very uncertain whether the custom existed in Christ's day, and moreover it would be impossible to prove that the disciples followed this custom, if it could be proved to have existed. This is to show the gift of the Holy Spirit, the inner life of grace. The parallel between the image of the God-Man Jesus holding the child-like soul of Mary and the image of the Mother Mary holding the Christ-child in her own arms is, of course, deliberate. It is in the Church that we see diversity in its most beautiful harmony. But even then, they are among equals. A Bible Study by Jack Kelley Pentecost comes in the early summer (mid May-mid June). The Holy Spirit filled the Church with power and added 3,000 new believers. And on Pentecost, we celebrate the The Pentecost icon depicts the descent of the Holy Spirit onto the Church. Pentecost, however, shows that the Holy Spirit has been sent to unite all people in the new spiritual building of the Church, and through this new building we can reach heaven and become adopted children of God, no matter our race or tongue (language). Below are a few reflections on the symbolism and meaning of this icon. In years past, Pentecost was celebrated with greater solemnity than it is today. In Eastern branches of Christianity, the Day of Pentecost is one of the Great Feasts. Among other rituals, they were to wave before the Lord two loaves of wheat bread, made with leaven (Lev. [1] N. Pokrovsky, The Gospels in Iconographic Records, St. Petersburg, 1892, p. 463. Quoted from Ouspensky, Lossky, The Meaning of Icons, 1982, p. 208, Further reading about this icon, including why the Theotokos is sometimes depicted at the center and why it is not proper to show the Holy Spirit as a dove in this icon: https://iconreader.wordpress.com/2011/06/14/pentecost-icon-as-an-icon-of-the-church/, I grew up Protestant, but found my home in the ancient Orthodox Church while in my 20's. I'm now a seminary student and I keep this blog going to encourage those who are trying to deepen their walk with Christ. Sometimes, the figure is shown coming out, into the light, having a cloth containing scrolls which represent the teaching of the Apostles. In the Old Testament Pentecost was the feast which occurred fifty days after Passover. It is Cosmos. Through the power of the Holy Spirit the Church brings light to the whole world by her teaching. “Pentecost” is actually the Greek name for a festival known in the Old Testament as the Feast of Weeks ( Leviticus 23:15; Deuteronomy 16:9 ). As with many icons, the Apostles are pictured in an inverse perspective, the figures grow larger as they recede into the background. On the right, we have Paul, John, Mark, and other disciples. At the center of the group of Apostles, there is a place which is unoccupied. / Therefore, with one voice, we glorify the All-holy Spirit! ... dove, Pentecost, symbol, icon, holy spirit, fire. The seven feasts of the Lord are found in Leviticus 23. Other Apostles are holding scrolls that represent the teaching authority given to them by Christ. It is a Holy Day and is described in Leviticus 23:15-22. King Cosmos Day of the Holy Spirit Monday, May 26/Jun 8 2009. We read this in Slavonic at the top of the icon. The twelve rays coming from the mandorla (semicircle at the top) and the tongues of fire, sometimes shown above each Apostle, represent the Holy Spirit coming upon all of those depicted.