This is the 50th day following Easter.
On the fiftieth day of Christ’s resurrection, when many people were gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate the Pentecost, the Apostles went to the Upper Room as instructed by Christ. They prayed with one heart and waited for the coming of the Holy Spirit, according to the promise of Jesus.
Suddenly, a sound filled the entire house. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among the Apostles. A tongue rested on each of them. They were filled with the Holy Spirit and they began to speak in other languages. Thus strengthened from above, the Apostles began to minister and testify about Christ. People from many different countries gathered to listen to the Apostles and were amazed, for each listened and understood in his or her native language. Thanks to this amazing ministry, almost 3,000 people converted on that day and were baptized in Christ. Thus Christ’s Church with its first members was created. That day the divine act of salvation came to its conclusion and a new era began. The Holy Spirit began to pour on those who believed in Christ and who were baptized in Him, and it will continue to do so until the end of this world.
The coming of the Holy Spirit occurred fifty days after the Jewish Easter, on the day of Pentecost, the same day God gave the Decalogue to the Jews through the Prophet Moses. Just as Easter, the feast of the deliverance of the Jews from Egyptian captivity, transformed into the feast of resurrection in the new covenant, likewise the Pentecost was transformed into the day of granting grace and truth in the new covenant_the coming of the Holy Spirit.
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We thank you all for joining our live streams every Sunday! As we continue to spread the Good Word of the Gospel, we ask that you all keep our church's servants in your prayers. We are still navigating through a lot of changes, and just ask for your kind patience as we settle a lot of the technical issues that arise while streaming the Divine Liturgy.
If you have any questions about the Divine Liturgy, Sacramental Services, or anything else, please do not hesitate in reaching out to the Church's main office through the St. Sarkis website: [ Ссылка ]
Additionally, if you'd like to contribute to our church, we encourage to visit our website to make any donation from your heart:
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Thank you all, once again, and we pray you have a blessed week!
Celebrant Priest: Very Rev. Fr. Pakrad Berjekian,
Pastor of St. Sarkis Armenian Apostolic Church of San Diego
