Acts 2
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. - Acts 2:1-4
Jesus had charged them to remain in Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit. Now they receive the promised outpouring, and it changes everything!
(It was a long time before I was aware that there was a Jewish feast referred to by Hellenic Jews as Pentecost, so I thought that the name of this day was given by the Church to refer to this event rather than the Hebrew feast day to which it corresponds.)
The gift of tongues is manifested to the apostles, but more important is the transformation in boldness that is evidenced as, in subsequent verses, they go forth to proclaim the Gospel with the boldness that it warrants but which they had heretofore lacked. The Spirit has driven timidity from their hearts and loosened their tongues to proclaim the wondrous events to which they were witness. They are not afraid for themselves any more.
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