I WAS just thinking that we have two Bank Holidays during May, one at the beginning and one at the end of the month, but also considering the two previous ones, namely Christmas the other one of being Easter. At Easter the Christian Church remembers on Good Friday the crucifixion of Jesus, and on Easter Sunday we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus.

I have recently been trying to put myself in the shoes of the close followers of Jesus, after what they had seen happen to him. He had been arrested, tried, and crucified. This had happened at breakneck speed, so were they going to suffer the same fate? Although they knew that Jesus had risen from the dead, they still feared what might happen to them. We are told they kept themselves locked in because they were afraid. I am sure if I had been there, I would have been with them, what about you?

Jesus appeared to them on a number of occasions, and told them, “Peace be with you”. That must have reassured them, and he told them not to leave Jerusalem but wait for the Holy Spirit to come.

This is what Christians will be celebrating on this coming Sunday, May 24, and it is called Pentecost Sunday, and is often referred to as the “birthday of the Church” This is a celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit.

So, what difference did it make to those fearful followers of Jesus who had kept themselves locked away. Well, it transformed them completely. It gave them a boldness to begin to share with the world what they had been taught by Jesus during the years they had spent on the road with him before his arrest and crucifixion.

Jesus told his disciples “to go into all the world and tell the good news”, and that is what they did for the rest of their lives, and so the good news eventually reached the shores of the UK, thanks to them.

They were so committed to doing this that except for one named John they were all martyred for their faith.

The Holy Spirit had transformed them, and it is that same Holy Spirit that is with us as Christians in 2026, nothing has changed.

John Salter, Wellington Churches Together