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• The Season After Pentecost

An Introduction To The Ordinary Time After Pentecost

The season from Pentecost to the beginning of Advent is ordinary, or nonfestive, time. During this season, the church focuses on its vision for witness to the world and on God's continuing work in bringing about his kingdom.

Prayers For The Season After Pentecost

The following prayers are based on themes contained in Scripture passages and hymns that are used in many worship traditions. Following this set of prayers are suggested Scripture passages on which other prayers can be based.

The Environment For Worship During The Season After Pentecost

Trinity Sunday is celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. Trinity Sunday, a principal feast day in the church, is different from other principal days in that it does not commemorate an aspect of God's saving deed in history. Instead, it celebrates the Triune God, the source of the historical action that brings our salvation. It is appropriate for the Trinity to be celebrated on the Sunday after Pentecost, for Pentecost expresses the fullness of the Godhead by revealing the Spirit.

All Saints’ Day

In the early church it became customary to remember the martyrs of the church in worship. When the list of martyrs became too great, a special day was set aside to remember their commitment to Christ, a commitment that led to their suffering and death for the sake of the gospel. Although different areas of the church celebrated the memory of these saints on different days at first, by a. d. 835 it became the custom to celebrate these martyrs on November 1. Today, All Saints' day is celebrated on November 1 or the Sunday closest to November 1.

The Feast Of Thanksgiving

The Scriptures mandate: "You shall observe the feast of the harvest of the first fruits of your labors" (Exod. 23:16). Throughout the history of the church, worshiping communities have designated certain days for common thanksgiving to God. In North America, the anniversary of the early Puritan thanksgiving feast has become the day on which Christians of every tradition gather for worship.

Feast Of Christ The King Or Feast Of The Reign Of Christ

This celebration acknowledges the lordship of Jesus Christ over all of creation. This service is always celebrated at the end of the Pentecost season on the last Sunday before Advent begins.