25/05/2026
PENTECOST and PENTECOST SEASON - Ordinary Time where miracles become normalized
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PENTECOST
The ancient church chose to end the 50-day-long season of Easter with a Pentecost Sunday celebration. It was on Pentecost (50 days after the Resurrection and 10 days after the Ascension) that the risen, ascended Lord poured out the Holy Spirit in order to form and empower the church for mission.
You will recall that at the Last Supper, Jesus promised his disciples that he would send them "another helper," the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, ESV). Following his resurrection and ascension, our Lord fulfilled that promise on the day of Pentecost. As his disciples huddled in the upper room in Jerusalem praying, the Holy Spirit was poured out on them, filling the disciples with power, wisdom and authority.
On Pentecost Sunday, the church began, and thus Pentecost is often called the birthday of the church. On Pentecost, Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, established the church, empowered the church and gave it a clearer and deeper understanding both of its Lord and of its participation in the Lord's continuing ministry to the world by the Spirit. By the power of the Spirit. the church is the continuation of the presence of Jesus in and to the world.
PENTECOST SEASON - Ordinary Time
Following Pentecost Sunday, the Christian worship (liturgical) calendar provides a 6-month-long season called Ordinary Time (or, sometimes, the season after Pentecost, the season of Pentecost, or Pentecostide). The duration of this season varies from year to year depending on the date of Easter. Though called "Ordinary Time," there is nothing ordinary (mundane) about the season. The word "ordinary" derives from "ordinal" (as in ordinal numbers) and refers to the lectionary practice of assigning a number to each Sunday during Ordinary Time. The numbers are assigned by counting backward from the last Sunday of the liturgical year (always designated week 34).
Depending on the length of Ordinary Time in a given year, the first Sunday might be identified in the lectionary as, for example, "Proper 6."
Why couple "proper" with the number? It identifies the liturgical practices of certain denominations for that Sunday. Differing propers (with options in brackets) do not indicate differing Scripture readings, only differing liturgical aspects otherwise.
As seen in the diagram below, Ordinary Time focuses on The Story of the People of God---living out what has been learned by rehearsing The Story of Jesus throughout the first half of the liturgical year.