Pentecost
Pentecost is the name of the Feast Day on which we observe the coming of the Holy Spirit. That Feast Day is also known by the mostly archaic name of Whitsun. Pentecost is also the name of the season of the Church year that begins with the Feast of Pentecost and goes until sunset on the day before the first Sunday in Advent. The season of Pentecost is also called Common Time or Ordinary Time (mostly by Roman Catholics) or archaicly Trinity (in which case the first week after the Day of Pentecost is called Whitsun-tide). The Sunday next after Pentecost is called Trinity Sunday. Pentecost Sunday and Trinity Sunday are both movable feasts, since the dates on which they fall each year are determined by the date of Easter Sunday. In 2009 Pentecost Sunday falls on 31 May and Trinity Sunday falls on 7 June. You can read more about the historical background of our celebration of Pentecost in the first two chapters of the New Testament book of Acts.
The liturgical colour of the season of Pentecost is green, representing new life.
