Pentecost

The feast of Pentecost commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. This is recorded in the Acts of the Apostles Chapter 2 as having occurred fifty days after the Resurrection of Christ, on the ancient Jewish festival called the "feast of weeks" (which marked the first phase of the harvest). The name Whitsunday came to be used for this day because of the white garments worn by those who were baptized during the vigil which took place on the Saturday preceding Pentecost. The word Pentecost is Greek for "the fiftieth" (day after Easter).

The celebration of Pentecost or Whitsunday, as a Christian feast, dates back to the first century and there is a reference to Pentecost as early as St Paul's first letter to the Corinthians (16:8).
The Mass for Pentecost has the lovely Sequence, "Veni Sancte Spiritus", which contains such wonderful lines as 'Bend the stubborn heart and will; Melt the frozen, warm the chill. Heal our wounds, our strength renew; On our dryness pour thy dew. Wash the stains of guilt away; Guide the steps that go astray.'

At Vespers is sung the great hymn "Veni Creator Spiritus". This dates back to a 10th century manuscript, but has been variously attributed to Emperor Charles the Fat, grandson of Charlemagne, Gregory the Great, St Ambrose, and Rhabanus Maurus, Archbishop of Mainz (c.776 - c.856). From the 11th century it was used in ordinations, and from 1307 (the date of the coronation of Edward II) at coronations in England. Rather remarkably, it is the only hymn specifically prescribed by the Anglican1662 Book of Common Prayer. Much later, the words of the hymn were used by Mahler for the majestic opening of his eighth symphony.

The colour of the vestments for Pentecost is red, a colour symbolic of the Holy Spirit or of the tongues of fire, which are said to have appeared on the heads of the apostles on the original Pentecost.

An ancient rule was that law courts did not sit during the entire week following Pentecost. Within my professional lifetime this remained the norm on England's North Eastern Circuit.

In Italy it was customary to scatter rose leaves from the ceiling of the churches to recall the miracle of the fiery tongues; hence in Sicily and elsewhere in Italy Whitsunday is called Pascha rosatum. The Italian name Pascha rossa comes from the red colour of the vestments used onWhitsunday. In France it was customary to blow trumpets during divine service, to recall the sound of the mighty wind which accompanied the descent of the Holy Spirit.

In England horse racing was the traditional Whitsun amusement for the gentry. For more ordinary folk the Whitsun Ales were the thing. These were, despite the name, not a type of beer but rather country fairs, with sports and competitions, morris dancing displays, music, plays and of course socialising, eating and drinking, in fact a major event on the social calendar.

This Pentecost Sunday I was in London so was able to attend the principal Mass at the Brompton Oratory. The vestments were sumptuous: beautiful rich red, woven through with golden thread, and with tasselled dalmatic and tunicle for the deacon and subdeacon.

The music was even better. A Buxtehude organ prelude before Mass;Victoria's Missa Dum complerentur for the ordinary of the Mass;Palestrina's motet Dum complerentur at the Offertory; Attwood's lovely setting of Veni Creator Spiritus (originally written with English words) at Communion and Bach's fantasia Komm heiliger Geist as the finalvoluntary. Wonderful!