New long weekend for many French people. After the weekends of May 1, May 8 andAscenta fourth weekend extended occurs in this month of May 2023, with Whit Monday.
If Pentecost Monday is a holiday for many workers, it is on Sunday that Catholics celebrate Pentecost. This feast marks the date when God sends the Holy Spirit on the 120 disciples of Jesus, including the 12 Apostles, 10 days after the Ascension of Jesus to heaven. It takes place on the seventh Sunday after Easter, ie 50 days after the resurrection of Jesus, hence its name, which comes from the ancient Greek “pentêkostê”, meaning “fiftieth”.
Let us also open our hearts today to the gift of the Holy Spirit, who makes us feel all the beauty and the truth of God’s love in the dead and risen Christ. He pushes us to go out, to testify to this Love which always precedes us with his mercy. #Pentecost
— Pope Francis (@Pontifex_fr) May 23, 2021
Pentecost is an important feast because it closes the Easter season, which lasts seven weeks, of which it is the crowning moment. Of the five cardinal feasts of the Catholic liturgical year, it is the third most important after Easter and Christmas.
The date of Pentecost varies each year, as it takes place 50 days after Easter, which is itself a movable feast. It is always between May 10 and June 13.
If Pentecost takes place on Sunday, it is also celebrated on Monday in many European countries which have made it a public holiday. On the other hand, since 1965 and the new liturgical ordo of Paul VI, there is no longer a liturgy specific to Pentecost Monday.