Pentecost

==== Flowers, fruits, and branches ====
[[File:Protestant Altar Pentecost Red Flowers Green Birch.jpg|thumb|alt=A Protestant church altar and font, decorated for Pentecost with red flowering plants and green birch branches|A Protestant church altar and font, decorated for Pentecost with red flowering plants and green birch branches]]
The celebrations may depict symbols of the Holy Spirit, such as the dove or flames, symbols of the church such as [[Noah's Ark]] and the [[Pomegranate]], or especially within Protestant churches of [[Reformed tradition|Reformed]] and [[Evangelicalism|Evangelical]] traditions, words rather than images naming for example, the [[Seven gifts of the Holy Spirit|gifts]] and [[Fruits of the Spirit]]. Red flowers at the altar/preaching area, and red flowering plants such as [[geraniums]] around the church are also typical decorations for Pentecost masses/services.<ref name="stcatherineofsweden1"/>

These symbolize the renewal of life, the coming of the warmth of summer, and the growth of the church at and from the first Pentecost.<ref name="stcatherineofsweden1">{{cite web |url=http://www.stcatherineofsweden.org/BULLETIN.htm |title=St. Catherine of Sweden Roman Catholic Church – Bulletin |publisher=StCatherineofSweden.org |access-date=2010-05-17 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090829002010/http://www.stcatherineofsweden.org/BULLETIN.htm |archive-date=2009-08-29 }}</ref> In the southern hemisphere, for example, in southern Australia, Pentecost comes in the mellow autumntide, after the often great heat of summer, and the red leaves of the poinsettia have often been used to decorate churches then.

These flowers often play an important role in the ancestral rites, and other rites, of the particular congregation. For example, in both Protestant and Catholic churches, the plants brought in to decorate for the holiday may be each "sponsored" by individuals in memory of a particular loved one, or in honor of a living person on a significant occasion, such as their [[Confirmation]] day.<ref name="stcatherineofsweden1" />

In [[German language in Europe|German-speaking]] and other [[Central Europe]]an countries, and also in overseas congregations originating from these countries through migration, green branches are also traditionally used to decorate churches for Pentecost. [[Birch]] is the tree most typically associated with this practice in Europe, but other species are employed in different climates.{{Citation needed|date=June 2019}}