The Feast of Pentecost comes 50 days after Easter Sunday. This holy day whisks us into the presence of God alive and on the move, rushing and stirring around, among, and within us. It is a day to celebrate and welcome the Holy Spirit, who reveals God’s love and hope for all of creation. In the Spirit, we encounter divine joy and creativity. We find consolation in pain and struggle. We witness a power like no other that subverts death and oppression with life and liberation. We also become empowered to proclaim with “all flesh” God’s prophetic, redemptive, and transformative words for a world where all things have not yet been made new (Acts 2:17, Rev 21:5, NRSVUE).
The prayers, blessings, and resources below underscore these facets of the Holy Spirit’s movement. We share them with you in the hope that they may help your communities enter into Pentecost and celebrate what the Spirit is doing among you. We also commend to you the prayers featured in the article “Come Holy Spirit: 3 Prayers for Pentecost.” As you use or share these materials, please give credit to the original sources.
Prayers
Prayer for Our Dry Bones to Live
“Creator Spirit and Giver of life,
make the dry, bleached bones of our lives
live and breathe and grow again
as you did of old.
Pour out your Spirit upon the whole creation.
Come in rushing wind and flashing fire
to turn the sin and sorrow within us
into faith, power, and delight. Amen.”
From “Day of Pentecost, Year B: Prayers,” The Revised Common Lectionary Vanderbilt Divinity Library website (additional prayers are available at this link)
Prayer to Be Made Messengers of God’s Love
“Living God, you sent the Holy Spirit
to breathe life into your church.
Let us no longer be captives to fear,
but messengers of your saving love,
so that all may be reconciled in you;
through Jesus Christ, our peace.”
“John 20:19 – 23, Year A,” in “Prayers for Pentecost” by the Office of Theology and Worship, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Presbyterian Mission website (Mar. 29, 2011) (prayers for Years B and C are also available in the above link)
Prayer to Turn the World Again
“Living God,
eternal Holy Spirit,
let your bright intoxicating energy
which fired those first disciples
fall on us
to turn the world again.
Hear this prayer for your love’s sake.
Amen.”
Blessings
The Day of Pentecost Blessing
“May the Spirit of truth lead you into all truth, giving you grace to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, and to proclaim the wonderful works of God; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you, and remain with you always. Amen.”
The Book of Occasional Services (2018), 14
“When We Breathe Together: A Blessing for Pentecost Day”
“This is the blessing
we cannot speak
by ourselves.
This is the blessing
we cannot summon
by our own devices,
cannot shape
to our purpose,
cannot bend
to our will.
This is the blessing
that comes
when we leave behind
our aloneness
when we gather
together
when we turn
toward one another.
This is the blessing
that blazes among us
when we speak
the words
strange to our ears
when we finally listen
into the chaos
when we breathe together
at last.”
“When We Breathe Together: A Blessing for Pentecost Day” by Jan Richardson, “Pentecost: When We Breathe Together,” The Painted Prayerbook website (May 14, 2013)
Resources
- Becoming Human: The Holy Spirit and the Rhetoric of Race by Luke A. Powery (Westminster John Knox, 2022) – A book that illuminates the racial significance of the Holy Spirit’s presence and work for church life; it can be used for adult formation or a book study during Pentecost
- Pentecost Arts Festival Guide by Presbyterian Mission Agency – A free downloadable resource for organizing a churchwide arts festival for Pentecost (additional resources are available at “Day of Pentecost” on their website)
- Pentecost Bundle by Sanctified Art – A digital collection of resources for purchase for all ages that includes coloring posters, a visio Divina lesson, graphics, a poem for liturgical use, banner designs, and bonus art plus an accompanying visio Divina lesson for Trinity Sunday
- Pentecost Coloring Pages and Posters by Illustrated Ministry – Digital downloadable coloring pages and posters for purchase for all ages; one of the resource options is available in English and in Spanish
Featured image is by Cullan Smith on Unsplash