This past Sunday was the day of Pentecost and the start of Ordinary Time, the last period in the Christian calendar. Pentecost is recorded in Acts 2:1–41. Jesus’ disciples were told to stay in Jerusalem “until you have been clothed with power from on high.” (Luke 24:49) Jews were celebrating the “festival of weeks” (Leviticus 23:15–21) in which Jews were required, fifty days after Passover, to bring various offerings to the Lord after the harvest. Thus, Jerusalem was filled with visitors during this celebration.
Luke continues his Gospel writings in Acts and notes that Jesus’ followers were gathered on Pentecost when there was “a sound like the rush of violent wind.” (Acts 2:2) The crowd started speaking in different languages and it appeared that the people were drunk, although it was morning. Peter then spoke to the crowd and informed them that it was the Spirit moving amongst them. He quotes the prophet Joel: “I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy.” (Joel 2:28) Peter goes on to tell the crowd about Jesus and how Hebrew Scripture foretold the coming of the Messiah. (Acts 2:22–36) The crowd asked, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter responded, “Repent and be baptized every one of you.” (Acts 2:37–38) That day, about three thousand people were baptized. (Acts 2:41)
I left early on Pentecost for my Victoria (British Columbia) church because parking has been tight, and the church changed the early service time to better distribute the congregation between the early and late worship services. When I arrived, the parking lot was almost full, and I was fortunate to I find a space. I walked into Fellowship Hall and the coffee line was longer than usual. Kids were running around as I weaved around the many chatting groups to get to the sanctuary. There was a buzz of excitement that morning.
The sanctuary was filling up and by the time the music began, it was full. I have witnessed over the past several years a steady growth in church attendance. This congregation is the most diverse of any church I have ever attended and reflects the general Vancouver Island population. It is so good to see children and multi-generational Canadian families worshipping together alongside people speaking in foreign accents. Canada is an immigration country, a visible reminder of the Kingdom to come.
The minister preached about Pentecost and announced that it was Baptism Sunday. Two large metal washtubs were on the stage. I grew up in the Presbyterian Church and later joined the United Methodist Church. These mainline denominations do not designate special Sundays for baptisms because parents and unbaptized adults first meet with the minister and select a date to be baptized. Normally, the baptisms are done on infants. The minister put their hand in a basin of water and sprinkles water on the child’s head while stating the Trinity: “in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” It was rare to have an adult baptized in mainline Protestant churches as most members grow up in the church and are baptized as an infant or as a young adult during confirmation.
The Victoria minister then startled me by saying that over 130 professing adults and children would be baptized during the four Sunday services. He asked the people who previously requested to be baptized to come down and between thirty to forty people came forward. The minister asked if anyone else in the congregation wanted to be baptized and several adults rose. One man stood up and walked down to his wife who was in the baptism line and joined her. Her face lit up with joy and she passionately hugged him. Two at a time were submerged in the washtubs after professing their faith. The congregation clapped after each baptism and the sanctuary was filled with the Spirit. Many who were baptized raised their arms in joy after coming out of the water and hugged those assisting. New Christians were added during our modern Pentecost Sunday replicating the events written in Acts.
I came away from this service filled with hope. North American Christianity is in decline, but not at this Canadian church. I thought that if parents did not bring their children to church, the future of western Christianity was bleak. Witnessing so many new converts profess their faith in Jesus Christ linked the first Spirit-filled Jerusalem Pentecost to our post-modern world. This was the beginning of the Church.
Christian faith is centered on hope, which differs from optimism, an inclination to put the most favorable construction upon actions and events. Hope is a verb that anticipates an action or event that is desired to happen in the future. The Apostle Paul said it better in 2 Corinthians 4:16–18: “So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. For this slight, momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.”
My vision is blurred by my personal time in history and operates at a micro-level. I have learned, painfully, that God’s vision is at the macro-level. Whenever I get depressed with current events, I need to pull back and view history through a theological lens, from Genesis to our post-modern time. Then, one can easily see God-at-work, for God’s eternal time is not human mortal time. Hope is placing your trust in something far greater than yourself which is the mystery of faith.
