The Feast of Pentecost (from the Greek pentekoste, meaning “fiftieth”) is the culmination of our Easter celebration. On the fiftieth day of Easter, God sends his Holy Spirit to empower human beings to embody Jesus’ loving way of life in the world. The risen and ascended Lord is no longer present to the Church in the body of his flesh; the Church is now to be the new body of Christ, filled with his life through the gift of the Spirit. Today, we celebrate the Holy Spirit and the birth of the Church.