Live Broadcasts for the Festival of Weeks – Pentecost – Sunday, May 28.
Church of God, Worldwide Ass (UK) (Peter Hawkins) 6.00am
Church of God International (UK) (Gary Monk) 8.30am
Church of God, Worldwide Ass (UK) (Peter Hawkins) 9.30am
Church of God (UK) (Jamie McNab) 10.00am
Christian Fellowship Ministries (Keith Slough) 10.30am
Church of the Great God (Richard Ritenbaugh) 10.30am
United Church of God, Canton (Ryan Hall) 10.30pm
Church of God International (Medina) (John Nicoletti) 11.00am
The Father’s Call (Bill Hutchison) 11.00am
Church of God Ministries (Scott Hoefker) 11.15am
Seventh Day Christian Assembly (Ken Swiger) 11.15am
Church of God (USA) (Don Roth) 11.30am
Church of God International (Tyler TX) (Larry Watkins) 12 noon
House of God (Mike Alewine) 12 noon
Eternal Church of God (Terry Moore) 1.00pm
CoG Ministries International (Michigan/Indiana) (t.b.a.) 1.00pm
Independent Church of God 7th Day (Alan Holt) 1.30pm
Guardian Ministries (David Antion) 1.30pm
Rock Valley Christian Church (David Liesenfelt) 1.30pm
Church of God Cincinnati (Jim O’Brien) 1.30pm
Truth on the Web Ministries (t.b.a.) 1.45pm
Tulsa Church of God (Barnabas Grayson) 2.00pm
Church of God Ministries International (Tom Kerry) 2.00pm
7th Day Congregation – Eddy (Nick Linville/Ray Cullum) 2.00pm
Church of the Sovereign God (Ben Faulkner) 2.00pm
Church of God Fellowship, Spokane (Harold Smith) 2.00pm
The Father’s Call (Marshall Stiver) 2.00pm
United Church of God, Canton (Ryan Hall) 2.30pm
Church of God Webcast (Jeff Patton) 2.30pm
Church of the Great God (Richard Ritenbaugh) 2.30pm
Yahweh’s Restoration Ministry (Alan Mansager) 2.30pm
Church of God Big Sandy (Dave Havir/Reg Killingley) 3.00pm
Church of God (USA) (Don Roth) 3.30pm
Church of the Eternal God (Eric Rank) 3.30pm
Lighted Way Ministries (Mark & Shauna Manfredine) 5.00pm
The second annual festival is the Festival of Weeks, known as Pentecost
in the New Covenant, which will be on Sunday, May 28th, this year.
Shavuot in the Hebrew (Jewish) calendar will be on Friday, May 26th.
Please check that the group with whom you wish to attend
will be observing the festival on the desired day.
Orosi, California May 25 – 29 Venue : Safe Haven Farms
Growing in Torah Festival Information
Craigmont, Idaho Venue : SYM, 104-106 West Main St. (Trailer camp site)
Seekers of Yahweh Ministries May 26 – 28 Festival Information
Nashville, Indiana Venue : Abe Martin Lodge, Brown County State Park
United Church of God May 26 – 28 Festival Information
Grand Rivers, Kentucky Venue : Green Turtle Bay
Intercontinental Church of God May 26 – 28 Festival Info
Ava, Missouri Venue : Ava TrueView Family Theater
Shepherd’s Way Fellowship May 27 – 28 Festival Information
Rocheport, Missouri Venue : YAIM – free campground.
Yahweh’s Assembly in Messiah May 27 – 28 Festival Information
Cincinnati, Ohio Venue : CoG Cincinnati, 9191 Daly Road.
Church of God Cincinnati May 25 – 28 Festival Information
Roseburg, Oregon Venue : Lighted Way Ministries
Lighted Way Ministries May 27 – 28
Cleveland, Tennessee Venue : The Ramp at OCI
Jacob’s Tent Fellowship May 26 – 28 Festival Information
Knoxville, Tennessee Venue & Visitor Info : Big Ridge State Park
7th Day Church of God May 27 – 28 Festival Information
Spearman, Texas Venue & Visitor Info : Lake Palo Duro
Life of Worship Ministries May 26 – 28 Festival Information
How and Why Herbert Armstrong changed from a Monday Pentecost
Herbert Armstrong, for the majority of his ministry, held to the view that God would not allow any of His annual holy days to be on a Sunday, as this is a day of pagan worship.
He taught that Jesus’s resurrection was on the Sabbath, not Sunday.
He argued that Pentecost should not be kept on a Sunday, but on a Monday, because:
“In ENGLISH, 50 days FROM a Sunday can be counted NO OTHER WAY than that ONE day FROM Sunday is Monday, and 50 days FROM Sunday always falls on a Monday.”
He held firmly to this view, despite many protests:
“Time after time, Mr. Armstrong refused to give up a Monday Pentecost. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, the protests of half the Eugene church – over the counting of Pentecost – resulted in Emil Heibel’s leading off the dissidents, who formed a separate church believing in a Sunday Pentecost. There were many attacks, from all across the nation, leveled against a Monday Pentecost.” (The Doctrine of Pentecost, How and Why it was Changed, p.2)
Herbert Armstrong’s first argument, that the annual holy days of the Hebrew Calendar cannot be on a Sunday, holds true for the seventh month. One of the postponement rules does not allow Rosh Hashanah (Day of Trumpets) to fall on a Sunday, therefore the 1st day of Tabernacles and the 8th day cannot be on a Sunday either.
The 1st day of Unleavened Bread can, however, fall on a Sunday – although this had not happened since 1954, so those who joined the Radio/Worldwide Church of God after then (the vast majority) came to accept that none of the holy days would be on a Sunday.
It is surely no coincidence that plans to persuade Herbert Armstrong to change to a Sunday Pentecost should be laid when it was realized that the 1st day of Unleavened Bread in 1974 would fall on a Sunday. One of his two great pillars against Sunday holy days was about to crumble!
The evidence for a Sunday Pentecost in the Pentecost Study Material depends on acadenic interpretation of Hebrew grammar. The plain truth for a Sunday Pentecost is in the Bible and is much simpler.
Herbert Armstrong assumed that the way he counted was also the biblical way of counting. He used the modern ‘Hindu-Arabic’ numerals – 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 – in counting the days in Leviticus 23:15-16, starting at day zero on the first Sunday, thus reaching day 50 on a Monday – however the Hindu-Arabic numbering system was not created until many centuries after the Bible was completed!
In 525AD Dionysius Exiguus devised the Anno Domini (AD) method of counting years.
In 731AD the Venerable Bede published his ‘Ecclesiastical History of the English People’.
The events in his history were generally referred to as happening in BC years – Before Christ. (Bede did not coin the term BC – he, like Dionysius, would have used a Latin phrase.)
1AD was preceded by 1BC – no year zero.
In 1202 the Italian mathematician Fibonacci published Liber Abaci, which popularized the ‘Hindu-Arabic’ numerals in Europe. Although this offered a superior and easier method of calculation, it was not until the advent of the Industrial Revolution that it became the main form of counting.
Here are a couple of examples of Biblical counting, one from the Hebrew text and one from the Greek text.
In Samuel 20 there are references to ‘three days’ and ‘the third day’, and there is a count of the days, demonstrating that the 1st day was included in the count.
Day 1 v.5 And David said unto Jonathan, Behold, to morrow is the new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat: but let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even. v.12 And Jonathan said unto David … when I have sounded my father about to morrow any time, or the third day … v.18-19 Then Jonathan said to David, To morrow is the new moon: and thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty. And when thou hast stayed three days, then thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself …
Day 2 (evening) v.24 … when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to eat meat.
v.25 David’s place was empty. v.26 Nevertheless Saul spake not any thing that day: for he thought, Something hath befallen him.
Day 3 (evening) v.27 And it came to pass on the morrow, which was the second day of the month, that David’s place was empty: and Saul said unto Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to meat, neither yesterday, nor to day? v.34 So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second day of the month …
Day 3 (morning) v.35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David.
When was “the time appointed”? – on the third day, when David had “stayed three days” (v.19).
Acts 10 shows how the Romans and the Jews were counting in the 1st century AD:
Day 1 v.1 Now there was a certain man in Caesarea, Cornelius by name, a centurion … v.3 He saw in a vision evidently about the ninth hour of the day an angel of God coming in to him … v.4 … And he said unto him … v.5 … send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname is Peter.
Day 2 v.9 And on the morrow, as these are proceeding on the way, and are drawing nigh to the city, Peter went up upon the house-top to pray … v.17 Now while Peter was much perplexed in himself what the vision which he had seen might mean, behold, the men that were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon’s house, stood before the gate.
Day 3 v.23 Having called them in, therefore, he lodged them, and on the morrow Peter went forth with them, and certain of the brethren from Joppa went with him,
Day 4 v.24 and on the morrow they did enter into Cesarea; and Cornelius was waiting for them, having called together his kindred and near friends …
v.30 And Cornelius said, Four days ago till this hour, I was fasting, and [at] the ninth hour praying in my house, and, lo, a man stood before me in bright clothing.
“Four days ago” – Cornelius did not count back from day zero – day 4 was the 1st day in his count back.
7th Day Churches of God 