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| Q: | Please clarify the exact date of Pentecost. I always understood it to be, as the root of the word itself suggests, 50 days after Easter. I know in Germany the day after Pentecost Sunday--i.e., the 50th day after Easter (if one does NOT count Easter as the first day, of course) is also a holiday and churches are jammed on that Monday. So, is Pentecost on the 7th Sunday after Easter, which is the 50th day if one counts Easter as "day one"? If so, why are the churches in Germany "packed to the rafters," as I know they are, on the day after Pentecost Sunday, which is the 50th day AFTER Easter? | ||||||
| A: | The Jewish way of counting days between events was not like ours. We would say that the 50th day after Easter is a Monday: 1st Sunday to 8th Sunday = 7 X 7 (49). One more day brings us to Monday. The fiftieth day after Easter by our reckoning = Monday. The Jews began their count on the first day. Sunday to Monday = two days, not just one. For instance, circumcision was to take place on the "eighth day." But child born on Monday would be circumcised on the following Sunday, not Monday. Recall Jesus' words that the Son of Man would rise "after three days." The Jews began the count on Friday and what happened on Sunday was "after three days." For us the expression would mean "72 hours or so." Not for the Jews. For centuries, German Christians have worshiped on Second Christmas Day, Easter Monday, and Monday after Pentecost. Even for non-Christians, those days are national holidays in Germany. | ||||||
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