This Sunday we recall the coming of the Holy Spirit as recorded in Acts 2:1-21
"When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability."Around here, folks traditionally wear red when they attend church on the Day of Pentecost.
My how things have changed. Religion News reports that more colors are being added by our LGBT friends,
"Fast forward to today’s Pentecost, add a specially crafted liturgy, prayers, blessings and bags of red, gold, orange and black glitter to make what Parity, a New York-based LGBT advocacy group, hopes will be a way to affirm LGBT Christians.
The Pentecost project is a 'collaboration' between Parity and Queer Virtue, an LGBT-affirming organization founded by Rev. Elizabeth Edmund, an Episcopal priest and activist.
'Pentecost’s liturgical color is red, but the other colors are there to represent diversity, which is what Pentecost is all about,' said Marian Edmonds-Allen, Parity’s executive director. 'It is about the diversity in the church, which is beautiful, just as all of us humans are beautiful in our diversity.'
As Edmonds-Allen says and anyone who has ever cleaned up after a glittery craft project knows, glitter 'never gives up.' It has a special power, she said, when applied to the forehead by another person.
'People love to experience the personal touch, especially people who are queer and haven’t been to church in a long time,' she said. 'They haven’t had someone look them in the eye and say, God loves you, just as you are, and when they do, it is very powerful.'”Oh yeah, Pentecost is all about diversity. It has nothing to do with the life transforming power of the Holy Spirit. "Diversity" demands of God to "love me just as I am", a sinner in no need of a Saviour.
I am still looking for a scriptural reference for that one.
If anybody assaults me with glitter this Sunday, I'm filing charges!
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I see Pentecost differently this year at age 72 than past years. It is less about 1 Corinthians 12 and more about chapter 13. It is more about empowerment to grow the Fruit of the Spirit than to display the Gifts of the Spirit. What was the element added at Pentecost that led the fearful disciples to become bold? It was Love.
ReplyDeleteThe transformation of the disciples from fair weather friends to bold declarers of Jesus as Lord was the miracle of Pentecost.
DeleteA young relative is a Pentecostal Christian, and believes that the gift of speaking in tongues is a required evidence of real Christian conversion. I think St. Paul disagrees, particularly since, unlike Acts, the tongues people speak at his church are unintelligible to anyone else.
ReplyDeleteBut this is a far less serious problem than the idea that Pentecost might mean, "Come as you are and bring your sins with you! Sins is unimportant."
Sounds like they're trying to make Pentecost into Holi, which is pagan, last I looked.
They are trying to make it more like Holi, lots of colors and fun.
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