speaking in tongues?

[midori]

Don’t forget that “the interpretation of tongues” is also a gift of the Holy Spirit.

I’m trying to remember who told me about being at a big praise-and-worship festival, and there were people who were shouting in tongues. The person who was with this person got very indignant and drove them off/made them stop/something. They explained that they were actually yelling very blasphemous things— but no one else around had the gift of Interpretation of Tongues to know the difference. So you do have to be careful.

On the other hand, I know someone who was considering joining a particular religious order. They didn’t go into details, and I didn’t ask, but it seemed that it was not uncommon for them to sing in tongues as a group. Ultimately, the order was not a good match for them, but that part of their charism always stuck with me.

 

[ccmcmg]

When I pray in tongues, I often sing and no, I do not understand what I am saying. I have used this form of prayer when unsure of God’s Will, when deciding between two different courses of action. I use it simply to give praise to God. It is under my control in that if I am praising God in tongues as I walk, and see somebody approach, I can stop my prayer. This is no different than if I were praying the rosary or any other type of prayer.
If I do not understand the language, how then do I know that I am praising God? My prayer begins in English with praise and gratitude. “Praise you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus.” repeated until my prayer language takes over. I am full of joy.
I do not have the gift of interpretation. When I have lifted up my voice during a prayer group, there have been times that another person has interpreted what I have said.
My natural voice, when I am not praying in tongues, has not changed.
Another time when I may use my prayer language is when I am praying for somebody, or over somebody for healing. I yield to the Holy Spirit in the course of praying for the person. Being open to the Holy Spirit, also opens me to other gifts. Perhaps I may receive a word of encouragement to give to the person for whom I am praying.

DebChris,

This is very similar to my experience. GrannyMH was a great help to me when I was blessed with this gift; please everyone, listen to her on this.

On occasion, I may learn what I’m praying for in tongues, in my heart. I loooooooove so much singing in tongues, especially alone with Jesus in Adoration.

At times when praying in tongues to the Lord, I’ve been overcome by great joy; other times, great sorrow or sadness, but with peace in all of it.

For me, it began when I was attending a prayer meeting geared to the Holy Spirit, after I had attended a Healing/Charismatic Mass in my diocese. I spoke with the few others, and they offered to pray over me. I elected to kneel, in submission to the Spirit. I then was weak, with calm and peace, but did not yet pray in tongues. That came later that week. I have been able to pray in tongues ever since. Sometimes, it’s out loud; other times, it is in silence. I will sometimes understand what I’m praying (but that’s more recent). I don’t speak/pray in tongues for it to be interpreted (at least, not yet).

I try to be open to whatever gifts of the Spirit He has for me, His lowly servant. Right now, I can feel more is happening, but something in me is holding back, blocking me from opening up completely. However, life is a journey, not a sprint, and it will happen in His Time, not mine.

I have been moved greatly by the way the Spirit has worked in my life, both externally and internally. He is so Great and Loving and Merciful!

(However, don’t think that you must pray or speak or interpret in tongues. It does not make one better or worse than anyone else on this earth.)

 

[mikekle]

From personal experience, it is not something the person can control, it just happens, but the ONLY place I have seen this happen regularly was in a Pentecostal church, I have never seen it occur in a Catholic church. It is also very real, its not something that can be faked.

 

[Bob_Crowley]

I’ve never spoken in tongues, although I’ve heard others speaking in tongues, both at a protestant church and a catholic church.

The first time was years ago when I was hanging around a deaf ministry, wondering if I should get involved. I’m hard of hearing - not deaf. But my old pastor commented that if you’re going to help the disabled, you need to either have the same disability or be completely whole. I was neither in that case, so i withdrew.

But I did get to hear the deaf speaking in tongues, which was a bit odd.

However there were 3 things that either happened or I noticed as a result -

1. There wasn’t much attempt to interpret what was being said. I don’t mean interpretation in the normal linguistic sense, but nobody seemed to say in English “I seem to be getting told that …”. And this seems to be a feature of most “speaking in tongues” that I’ve heard - nobody interprets what’s being said.
2. At one point I felt as though something was descending on my mind, but as I’d had a fair old battle with spiritual forces, I was damned if I was going to let something control my mind. So I resisted it. And I’ve never really made much effort to go to a charismatic effort to “speak in tongues” ever since, other than a couple of attendances at Catholic charismatic masses, more out of curiosity than dedication.
3. There was one occasion however when the lady leading the deaf group was standing next to me, and she said “Ohh! There’s a real spirit of rejection here! I can feel it!” I suppose there was - I’ve written ad infinitum about what happened the night my father died. So I suppose that at least was accurate.

That was pretty much the outcome of my protestant dabbling with tongues, and I still haven’t spoken in tongues.

In the case of the Catholic Church, there is a charismatic catholic movement, and I"ve gone along to their masses on a couple of occasions, mainly to check it out.

It’s a bit more tightly controlled than the protestant version, but again there seems to be a lack of emphasis on interpretation, or a lack of any statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit.

MInd you, I know a very responsible Catholic in our Vinnies group who has spoken in tongues from time to time, and I’ve heard a local prayer group in our church break out in tongues from time to time.

But still without intrepretation.

So at this stage I haven’t spoken in tongues, and since I’m a bit angry with God at the moment, I’m not in a hurry to do so. On the other hand I’ve got no problem with other people doing it, but I wish there was a bit more interpretation to back it up.

 

[grannymh]

I’ve never spoken in tongues, although I’ve heard others speaking in tongues, both at a protestant church and a catholic church.

The first time was years ago when I was hanging around a deaf ministry, wondering if I should get involved. I’m hard of hearing - not deaf. But my old pastor commented that if you’re going to help the disabled, you need to either have the same disability or be completely whole. I was neither in that case, so i withdrew.

But I did get to hear the deaf speaking in tongues, which was a bit odd.

However there were 3 things that either happened or I noticed as a result -

1. There wasn’t much attempt to interpret what was being said. I don’t mean interpretation in the normal linguistic sense, but nobody seemed to say in English “I seem to be getting told that …”. And this seems to be a feature of most “speaking in tongues” that I’ve heard - nobody interprets what’s being said.
2. At one point I felt as though something was descending on my mind, but as I’d had a fair old battle with spiritual forces, I was damned if I was going to let something control my mind. So I resisted it. And I’ve never really made much effort to go to a charismatic effort to “speak in tongues” ever since, other than a couple of attendances at Catholic charismatic masses, more out of curiosity than dedication.
3. There was one occasion however when the lady leading the deaf group was standing next to me, and she said “Ohh! There’s a real spirit of rejection here! I can feel it!” I suppose there was - I’ve written ad infinitum about what happened the night my father died. So I suppose that at least was accurate.

That was pretty much the outcome of my protestant dabbling with tongues, and I still haven’t spoken in tongues.

In the case of the Catholic Church, there is a charismatic catholic movement, and I"ve gone along to their masses on a couple of occasions, mainly to check it out.

It’s a bit more tightly controlled than the protestant version, but again there seems to be a lack of emphasis on interpretation, or a lack of any statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit.

MInd you, I know a very responsible Catholic in our Vinnies group who has spoken in tongues from time to time, and I’ve heard a local prayer group in our church break out in tongues from time to time.

But still without intrepretation.

So at this stage I haven’t spoken in tongues, and since I’m a bit angry with God at the moment, I’m not in a hurry to do so. On the other hand I’ve got no problem with other people doing it, but I wish there was a bit more interpretation to back it up.

May I be blunt.

What I am hearing is a lack of proper information about two totally separate charismatic gifts. This lack of proper information is very common among all Catholics.

One of these two gifts is simply praying to God. There is no need to be “speaking in Tongues” if what you want is to pray to God. God understands the vernacular. He also understands the common gift (common in the sense that it is available to all people) of praying in Tongues. So flip a coin if one cannot decide which mode of prayer to use.

My apology, Bob.

You have written a perfect post which, under normal circumstances, I would answer immediately. I am sure that others can also reply to the points you mentioned. I have learned a lot from the people already posting here.

However, I just received a phone call which I need to take care of.

Your valid concern about interpretation needs some rather complex, at times, explanations.
I especially appreciate your courtesy. Thank you.

P.S. – This is the best quote I have seen.
Bishop Fulton Sheen - “Hearing nun’s confessions is like being stoned to death with popcorn”.

 

[ccmcmg]

I can control when I decide to pray in tongues. It’s not like someone else suddenly out of the blue takes control of me and I’m ‘possessed’ by the Spirit, so to speak. (Not saying that doesn’t happen to others, but that’s not how it happens with me.) For me, it’s almost always a choice to pray in tongues, but the reason may be different each time. There have been a few occasions when I began to pray, and prayer tongues began without any conscious thought, but it was still during my choice to pray.

Sometimes, when I’m weak, and can’t concentrate, or am tired or exasperated, and I want to pray but cannot form the thoughts and words…I pray in tongues. Oh, it is so nice to yield to the Spirit, because He knows what I need, and He helps me ask for it, or praise in it, or even lament in it. I have some other inner conflict issues that I’m working through that sometimes preclude me from praying as I want to, as I ought to. When I pray in tongues, there is no concern of that. For it is God’s language, mine and His. The most important of the two of us understands it.

Other times, I make the choice to pray in tongues, even if I have my own words. Sometimes, I go between them both.

There are times I pray in English, my native language. But praying in tongues, for me, is a Gift from God, a Grace in His Name. He leaves it up to me when to pray in tongues.

I sometimes stumble over my words in English, my mind getting in the way of the Spirit, thinking about what I should say, what I should think, how to say it properly to the Most Holy, the Most High. I sometimes (but I’m learning) have difficulty making prayer ‘His’ instead of mine, when in English. Praying in tongues to God resolves that completely.

How do I know it’s real? Well, because God has placed that on my heart and soul. For ‘practical’ earthly proof, I had never really heard anyone pray or speak in tongues (a few words here in there, once in a Pentecostal Protestant church), but I started using them myself when I was given that Gift; I later on heard many many others pray in tongues, and it was very similar (yet very unique to each person) to what I had in my soul.

One thing praying in tongues does for me, is that it humbles me. It reminds me that God is in charge, and that I’m yielding my thoughts and words to Him. Just as the Lord’s Prayer is amazing for it is the one Jesus taught us, my prayer in tongues is from God as well.

I’m not any different than any one of you. I know y’all have different and better gifts in certain areas than I do. This is just one Gift, and I’m blessed to be open to Him and His Words for me.

Thank you for letting me respond with my thoughts and experiences. It is truly my honor to do so. My Lord is asking me right now, why I do not use this great Gift He gave to me more often. That, my Lord and Savior, I will. I will. God is good! Amen, amen, amen!

 

[ccmcmg]

I’ve never spoken in tongues, although I’ve heard others speaking in tongues, both at a protestant church and a catholic church.

The first time was years ago when I was hanging around a deaf ministry, wondering if I should get involved. I’m hard of hearing - not deaf. But my old pastor commented that if you’re going to help the disabled, you need to either have the same disability or be completely whole. I was neither in that case, so i withdrew.

But I did get to hear the deaf speaking in tongues, which was a bit odd.

However there were 3 things that either happened or I noticed as a result -

1. There wasn’t much attempt to interpret what was being said. I don’t mean interpretation in the normal linguistic sense, but nobody seemed to say in English “I seem to be getting told that …”. And this seems to be a feature of most “speaking in tongues” that I’ve heard - nobody interprets what’s being said.
2. At one point I felt as though something was descending on my mind, but as I’d had a fair old battle with spiritual forces, I was damned if I was going to let something control my mind. So I resisted it. And I’ve never really made much effort to go to a charismatic effort to “speak in tongues” ever since, other than a couple of attendances at Catholic charismatic masses, more out of curiosity than dedication.
3. There was one occasion however when the lady leading the deaf group was standing next to me, and she said “Ohh! There’s a real spirit of rejection here! I can feel it!” I suppose there was - I’ve written ad infinitum about what happened the night my father died. So I suppose that at least was accurate.

That was pretty much the outcome of my protestant dabbling with tongues, and I still haven’t spoken in tongues.

In the case of the Catholic Church, there is a charismatic catholic movement, and I"ve gone along to their masses on a couple of occasions, mainly to check it out.

It’s a bit more tightly controlled than the protestant version, but again there seems to be a lack of emphasis on interpretation, or a lack of any statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit.

MInd you, I know a very responsible Catholic in our Vinnies group who has spoken in tongues from time to time, and I’ve heard a local prayer group in our church break out in tongues from time to time.

But still without intrepretation.

So at this stage I haven’t spoken in tongues, and since I’m a bit angry with God at the moment, I’m not in a hurry to do so. On the other hand I’ve got no problem with other people doing it, but I wish there was a bit more interpretation to back it up.

Although GrannyMH is more the expert, I want to weigh in on a few things for you, from what I’ve learned.

There is a difference between speaking in tongues, and praying in tongues. Praying in tongues is between you and God, even if others are around, such as during the Charismatic Masses you’ve attended. It is not meant for interpretation. They can both sound exactly alike, and some might actually be speaking in tongues, but if there is no one there with the gift of interpretation, it will sound the same. They are separate gifts. Just because you can speak or pray in tongues doesn’t mean you will also interpret or understand. Interpretation isn’t required for tongues to be real. It’s easier, but even then, some might not be satisfied with only one or two who have the gift of interpretation.

You do not have to speak or pray in tongues to live a Godly life, a holy life. There are many, many more in this world that do not speak or pray in tongues, and will still see God in Heaven the same as I hope to. I invite everyone, not just you, to pray actively to be open to the Gifts and Desires of our Heavenly Father that He has for us, His Children. Just praying to Him, and telling Him, that you want to be open to His Gifts, whatever they are, can be amazing, even if you don’t receive what you think you should get, or want. In doing so, you might feel the ‘urge’ or need to pray in tongues. If so, just open your mouth, loosen your tongue, and place yourself in God’s care, and let go.

Lastly, let me offer my condolences on the loss of your father. May I pray for you, for the loss and for your anger at God to be resolved?

 

[DebChris]

If there is more control during Catholic Charismatic prayer meetings than Pentecostal services, it is because of the focus on discernment. As others have also said, the charisms are not a requirement for salvation. Charisms are by definition a gift of the Holy Spirit, given as He chooses. He chooses to give each us gifts through the Sacraments of Mother Church. Some of us put those gifts on the back of a shelf in the closet and never open them. Even after opening them, we need to learn how to use them properly. A child who is given a bicycle still needs to learn how to ride.
As Catholics, we have Tradition, the Magisterium as well as Scripture for support. This long history is lacking in Pentecostal Churches that broke away from non-Catholic denominations that did not understand the charisms when they manifested. The Catholic Church continues to place a greater emphasis on inward disposition than on the charisms themselves.
If I am praying privately, no interpretation is needed. My prayer allows me to discern God’s Will in difficult situations. Praying in tongues does not preclude other types of prayer. The reality is that involvement in the Charismactic Renewal encourages other forms of prayers and devotion including the Liturgy of the Hours and praying the rosary.
Anything spoken within a prayer group is subject to discernment to insure that it adheres to what the Catholic Church teaches.

 

[grannymh]

Continuation from previous post
That was pretty much the outcome of my protestant dabbling with tongues, and I still haven’t spoken in tongues.

My suggestion is to find out what the Gift of Praying in Tongues is in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. Check out the beginning chapters in the book linked above. The first thing which should get your attention is that praying in Tongues is not at all like the first gift in the list.
In the case of the Catholic Church, there is a charismatic catholic movement, and I"ve gone along to their masses on a couple of occasions, mainly to check it out.

It’s a bit more tightly controlled than the protestant version, but again there seems to be a lack of emphasis on interpretation, or a lack of any statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit.

Mind you, I know a very responsible Catholic in our Vinnies group who has spoken in tongues from time to time, and I’ve heard a local prayer group in our church break out in tongues from time to time.

But still without interpretation.

When we go back to the classical list of ministries above, we can understand why, in the instances described in this post, there was no interpretation. Giving God’s message to community present requires the group’s total attention in silence to the designated person giving God’s word. Usually, there is a period of personal prayer before the “speaking” in Tongues. There is always some form of discernment in place. The classical gift of speaking in Tongues is an event and not a statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit. The feeling which is in a person giving God’s message is the confidence that it is God speaking an unknown language. This confidence continues through the words of the Interpreter.

So at this stage I haven’t spoken in tongues, and since I’m a bit angry with God at the moment, I’m not in a hurry to do so. On the other hand I’ve got no problem with other people doing it, but I wish there was a bit more interpretation to back it up.

What you have described is known as the common gift of personal prayer (in Tongues) to God. There are a number of descriptions of this in previous posts. If you have questions about the above–that is understandable since it is rare that the nine gifts, which include a distinctive form of speaking in Tongues, are listed. Of course, if you have particular questions about the common (everyone can have it) gift of praying to God in Tongues, I will do my best to give you an answer.

Please be warned. Sometimes I get rather cranky regarding people who absolutely insist on knowing everything a person is saying in a personal Tongues prayer to God.
I gently ask if they also like to eavesdrop on people using the Sacrament of Confession.

 

[grannymh]

I’ve never spoken in tongues, although I’ve heard others speaking in tongues, both at a protestant church and a catholic church.

The first time was years ago when I was hanging around a deaf ministry, wondering if I should get involved. I’m hard of hearing - not deaf. But my old pastor commented that if you’re going to help the disabled, you need to either have the same disability or be completely whole. I was neither in that case, so i withdrew.

But I did get to hear the deaf speaking in tongues, which was a bit odd.

If I were listening to a deaf person using Tongues, I would definitely want to know what was being said. Would the person be asking to be healed? Would there be an expression of anger? Expressing our anger to God is normal. It is like saying “You know God, I do love You and I trust You. But there are times when I am overwhelmed with horrible feelings. I am sharing my feelings with You, not because You do not know about them. But because in the midst of my troubles, I know that You love me and that after my bodily death, You will bring me home to Your eternal joy.”

Yes, hearing a deaf person using Tongues would be odd. Yet, I bet there was a sense of respect for their privacy.

However there were 3 things that either happened or I noticed as a result -

1. There wasn’t much attempt to interpret what was being said. I don’t mean interpretation in the normal linguistic sense, but nobody seemed to say in English “I seem to be getting told that …”. And this seems to be a feature of most “speaking in tongues” that I’ve heard - nobody interprets what’s being said.

Here I need to shift to the nine gifts of the Holy Spirit listed by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians, Chapter 12. In the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, they are divided into three groups of three gifts.

Please note that these are abbreviated descriptions.
Complete information, including individual chapters, is in the book A* Key to Charismatic Renewal in the Catholic Church* by Msgr. Vincent M. Walsh.
ISBN: 0-87029-033-9. It has a Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur.

This book is online. http://brendancase.com/uploads/Key_to_the_Charismatic_Renewal.pdf
This is St. Paul’s Classical List. 1 Corinthians 12: 1-11.

A. The Word Gifts (The Power to Say)

1. The Gift of Tongues, currently known as speaking in Tongues whereby the person gives God’s message in an unknown language to the community present.
2. The Gift of Interpretation of what was spoken in Tongues.
3. The Gift of Prophecy. Here prophecy refers to a message from God given in the vernacular.

B. The Sign Gifts (The Power to do)

1. The Gift of Faith which enables the person at a given moment to believe, and to call upon God’s power with a certainty that excludes all doubt. This Gift of Faith is beyond our personal faith in God.
2. The Gift of Healing which enables a person to be God’s instrument.
3. The Gift of Miracles which could be instant healing or some other powerful manifestation of God’s power.

C. The Intellectual Gifts (The Power to Know)

1. The Word of Wisdom,whereby the person is granted an insight into God’s plan in a given situation.
2. The Word of Knowledge, whereby a person is granted an insight into a divine mystery or facet of man’s relationship to God.
3. The Gift of Discernment, whereby a person is enabled to know the source of an inspiration.

Due to the character limit, this will be continued in the next post.

 

[grannymh]

Continuation from previous post

The reason the nine gifts are described in the previous post is that it is important to recognize that the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a lot more than a bunch of strange sounds trying to be a language. These nine gifts are considered ministries requiring spiritual maturity and deep prayer, preparation, and discernment. It does sound like a renewal of the Pentecost years.

The two first gifts in the list above are often present at meeting or at a conference. Because these two gifts are part of St. Paul’s classical list, they are sacred ministries.
In addition, when the first two gifts are present, the last Gift of Discernment is also present.

Naturally, when these three gifts are present, we have a right to the interpretation.

1. At one point I felt as though something was descending on my mind, but as I’d had a fair old battle with spiritual forces, I was damned if I was going to let something control my mind. So I resisted it. And I’ve never really made much effort to go to a charismatic effort to “speak in tongues” ever since, other than a couple of attendances at Catholic charismatic masses, more out of curiosity than dedication.

When listening to people praying in odd sounds but with emotion, there is the possibility that thoughts, questions, personal emotions, etc. can descend on our own mind. Many times what is descending is peace, joy, the good things. However, that may not always be the case. You were absolutely correct to take the safe path and not let “something” control your mind. On the other hand, sometime in the future, you may want to go back to that “something” to see if it is explainable. Maybe it was dark doubts. Maybe the noise level was too high. That suggestion is not necessary. It is just another option to understanding what was happening around you.

In any case, speaking, the kind which is praying, in tongues is a separate experience.

1. There was one occasion however when the lady leading the deaf group was standing next to me, and she said “Ohh! There’s a real spirit of rejection here! I can feel it!” I suppose there was - I’ve written ad infinitum about what happened the night my father died. So I suppose that at least was accurate.

The question is – Was the comment of the lady one of the Gifts in the Classical list above? Or was it gut instinct? Maybe the lady was a mother with eyes in the back of her head. Somehow, we women lose that gift when our children are older. There are no definite answers to those questions. Your reaction was appropriate.

Due to the character limit, this will be continued in the next post.

 

[grannymh]

Continuation from previous post

That was pretty much the outcome of my protestant dabbling with tongues, and I still haven’t spoken in tongues.

My suggestion is to find out what the Gift of Praying in Tongues is in the Catholic Charismatic Renewal. There is some good information in the above posts. I will be glad to answer your questions. Check out the beginning chapters in the book linked in post 28. The first thing which should get your attention is that praying in Tongues is not like the first gift in the classical list.

The similarity is that in both gifts, one yields the speech mechanism to the Holy Spirit.

In the case of the Catholic Church, there is a charismatic catholic movement, and I"ve gone along to their masses on a couple of occasions, mainly to check it out.

It’s a bit more tightly controlled than the protestant version, but again there seems to be a lack of emphasis on interpretation, or a lack of any statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit.

Mind you, I know a very responsible Catholic in our Vinnies group who has spoken in tongues from time to time, and I’ve heard a local prayer group in our church break out in tongues from time to time.

But still without interpretation.

When we go back to the classical list of ministries above, we can understand why, in the instances described in this post, there was no interpretation. Giving God’s message to community present requires the group’s total attention in silence to the designated person giving God’s word. Usually, there is a period of personal prayer before the “speaking” in Tongues. There is always some form of discernment in place.

The classical gift of speaking in Tongues is an event. There is no need for a statement about what one is feeling in their spirit. The feeling which is in a person giving God’s message is the confidence that it is God speaking an unknown language. This confidence continues through the words of the Interpreter.

So at this stage I haven’t spoken in tongues, and since I’m a bit angry with God at the moment, I’m not in a hurry to do so. On the other hand I’ve got no problem with other people doing it, but I wish there was a bit more interpretation to back it up.

What has been described in some of the posts is known as the common gift of personal prayer (in Tongues) to God. There are a number of descriptions of this in previous posts. If you have questions about the above–that is understandable since it is rare that the nine gifts, which include a distinctive form of speaking in Tongues, are listed. Of course, if you have particular questions about the common (everyone can have it) gift of praying to God in Tongues, I will do my best to give you an answer.

Please be warned. Sometimes I get rather cranky regarding people who absolutely insist on knowing everything a person is saying in a personal Tongues prayer to God.
I gently ask if they also like to eavesdrop on people using the Sacrament of Confession.

I realize that this is a really long reply to a simple question. However, I think it is important to understand the whole picture when there are two different gifts employing Tongues. The Catholic Charismatic Renewal has become an important part of Catholic life. This is not because someone can pray in Tongues. It is because the Holy Spirit has renewed all the gifts present in the time of St. Paul.

 

[grannymh]

I’ve never spoken in tongues, although I’ve heard others speaking in tongues, both at a protestant church and a catholic church.

The first time was years ago when I was hanging around a deaf ministry, wondering if I should get involved. I’m hard of hearing - not deaf. But my old pastor commented that if you’re going to help the disabled, you need to either have the same disability or be completely whole. I was neither in that case, so i withdrew.

But I did get to hear the deaf speaking in tongues, which was a bit odd.

However there were 3 things that either happened or I noticed as a result -

1. There wasn’t much attempt to interpret what was being said. I don’t mean interpretation in the normal linguistic sense, but nobody seemed to say in English “I seem to be getting told that …”. And this seems to be a feature of most “speaking in tongues” that I’ve heard - nobody interprets what’s being said.
2. At one point I felt as though something was descending on my mind, but as I’d had a fair old battle with spiritual forces, I was damned if I was going to let something control my mind. So I resisted it. And I’ve never really made much effort to go to a charismatic effort to “speak in tongues” ever since, other than a couple of attendances at Catholic charismatic masses, more out of curiosity than dedication.
3. There was one occasion however when the lady leading the deaf group was standing next to me, and she said “Ohh! There’s a real spirit of rejection here! I can feel it!” I suppose there was - I’ve written ad infinitum about what happened the night my father died. So I suppose that at least was accurate.

That was pretty much the outcome of my protestant dabbling with tongues, and I still haven’t spoken in tongues.

In the case of the Catholic Church, there is a charismatic catholic movement, and I"ve gone along to their masses on a couple of occasions, mainly to check it out.

It’s a bit more tightly controlled than the protestant version, but again there seems to be a lack of emphasis on interpretation, or a lack of any statement about what someone might be feeling in their spirit.

MInd you, I know a very responsible Catholic in our Vinnies group who has spoken in tongues from time to time, and I’ve heard a local prayer group in our church break out in tongues from time to time.

But still without intrepretation.

So at this stage I haven’t spoken in tongues, and since I’m a bit angry with God at the moment, I’m not in a hurry to do so. On the other hand I’ve got no problem with other people doing it, but I wish there was a bit more interpretation to back it up.