Speaking in Tongues

[Vernon]

Biblically it seems that speaking in tongues was not only miraculous but served a practical purpose and the tongues that were spoken or heard were real languages that were being used. What the charismatics call "speaking in tongues" seems like gibberish, besides that fact that so many of them seemed to have willed it on themselves. Is it legitimate?

[Luigi]

I think it's legitimate, although I've never spoken in tongues myself.

I had an aunt who was very active in the charismatic movement - a Dominican sister who was faithful to her vows, her ministry, the magisterium, and everything else - and she prayed in tongues. She also told stories such as: A young girl started speaking in tongues at one of the prayer meetings, and no one thought it was a 'real' language until a Korean man came over to where she was and said she was speaking the Hail Mary in Korean.

But I have only second-hand information about it, no personal experience. 

 

[rachael]

i use my tongue to speak

[chrysostom]

I used to, before I was Catholic or baptized. I stopped well before becoming Catholic, just kind of wasn't into it anymore.

What was I doing then? Honestly, no idea. Maybe it was something legit, maybe not. If it were miraculous, seems funny everyone was getting this spiritual gift all at the same time, on command, no particular way to see the purpose of it. Just open your mouth and let something come out, and inevitably it would sound something similar to what other people in the room are sounding like. 

There is nothing equivalent to the contemporary glossolalia in documented church history across the apostolic churches either here or in the east.

I do not begrudge those who try it, but I keep at arms' length.

I am leery because of the lack of its presence in tradition. But also because it was essentially begun in the early 1900s outside of the Catholic Church among some Christians who quickly split into Trinitarian believers and non-Trinitarian modalists of some kind (Oneness Pentecostals) who started messing around with the formula of baptism and making it invalid from a Catholic perspective. I cannot believe this glossolalia, if at all legit someplace else, could have been a legitimate gift of the Holy Spirit amongst a congregation that denies the Trinity. Yet for the first few years of the movement, before they split off, you couldn't pick a Oneness Pentecostal from a Trinitarian in a crowd, they would all just be speaking in tongues. So I am leery.

Also because much of the early 1900s movement, the Azusa St Revival, saw itself as some sort of New Pentecost, and I think that's balderdash. Yet it was precisely the heirs of this movement which transmitted their doctrine to the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. Beginnings of the CCR: In 1967, a history professor, William Storey, and a graduate student, Ralph Kiefer, at Duquesne University PA, were "baptized in the Holy Spirit" in a charismatic prayer group of Episcopalians. The very first Catholic in history to be baptized in such a way.

I guess all the saints we currently venerate didn't get the memo.

Edited November 15, 2021 by chrysostom

[Dennis Tate]

12 hours ago, Vernon said:

Biblically it seems that speaking in tongues was not only miraculous but served a practical purpose and the tongues that were spoken or heard were real languages that were being used. What the charismatics call "speaking in tongues" seems like gibberish, besides that fact that so many of them seemed to have willed it on themselves. Is it legitimate?

All that I know is that my wife speaks in tongues and she is so gifted in other ways that I am still in a state of awe.

I first wrote to my wife on August 8, 2000 and somehow she was told by Jesus that I was going to be her husband and that she should fast and pray for me for thirty five days......... and she did it!!!!!!

For four weeks for three days per week only fruit juice... and then for the fifth week seven days in a row only fruit juice and Jesus would wake her up and get her to pray for me most mornings....  my wife is not a morning person but Jesus would not let her sleep until she prayed for me........ I felt astonishing Shalom / peace of mind as she began this fast.  

At the beginning of the fast I had written to her to let her know that I probably was not the one for her due to my nerves being pretty shot after my second separation that I knew would lead to divorce.  The following day I felt such Shalom and peace of mind I was in awe.... . then then I got an e-mail from my future wife saying "It is no problem that your nerves are shot I am asking Jesus to cover you with His Blood and fill you with His lovely fire."  Once I got that message I clued that my future wife was gifted at a level that I had never seen before... and within a couple of months I bought a plane ticket to Quito, Ecuador.  

12 hours ago, Luigi said:

I think it's legitimate, although I've never spoken in tongues myself.

I had an aunt who was very active in the charismatic movement - a Dominican sister who was faithful to her vows, her ministry, the magisterium, and everything else - and she prayed in tongues. She also told stories such as: A young girl started speaking in tongues at one of the prayer meetings, and no one thought it was a 'real' language until a Korean man came over to where she was and said she was speaking the Hail Mary in Korean.

But I have only second-hand information about it, no personal experience. 

 

I am in the same boat... I believe that these tongues can be legitimate but..... apparently there are witches who can do something very similar so they cannot simply be assumed to be from the God of Abraham until we see what fruits are produced by this gift.  Like you I have never spoken in tongues myself but I have walked through lots of fire tunnels or blessing tunnels..... and I did feel a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes.  

[Dennis Tate]

I have another one to throw at you for all of those who pray......

I think it was about fifteen to eighteen years ago in which my wife had an unusual dream..... She dreamed that she was on the phone with her mom in Quito, Ecuador.  She heard herself asking her mom to come to Canada and her mom replied that she and her dad and the whole family were incredibly busy and that they just could not make it at this time........ Then my wife heard herself tell her mom that "Dennis is being inaugurated as Prime Minister of Canada" and her mom said that they would drop everything and be there for the event?????????

On one level...... it is obvious that we never need any sort of official title in order to perform a specific role??????

I am trying my best to get Liberals, Conservatives, Progressive Conservatives, Canadian Greens, NDP and members of the People's Party of Canada to have friendlier and more win - win - win - win types of discussions.... .and I do believe that I have accomplished that to some degree over these past eighteen years.  

Edited November 15, 2021 by Dennis Tate
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[Ash Wednesday]

One of my childhood parish friends, devout Catholic as can be, has claimed to have had experiences speaking in tongues. My reaction when he first told me was probably something like:



Sometimes I think it's just people getting emotionally caught up in an experience and speaking gibberish. But...then I remind myself that observers shared my same skepticism in the past towards people speaking in tongues in the Bible. So who am I to completely rule it out now? 

At the end of the day, I have no idea. 

 

[Vernon]

I'm inclined to accept what Fr. Ripperger says: