Glossolalia: A Gift of the Spirit
The ‘Gift of Tongues’ (Glossolalia) as described by many Christians in present day is said to be evident proof of the manifestation of the Holy Ghost in an individual. Although many outsiders see it as a new belief or ideology, Christians believe that it is not a new practice but rather a forgotten gift of the spirit given to the early church right after Jesus’ departure. Many believers provide proof of that by recalling the biblical event with the Apostles at the Pentecost, found in Acts 2 and also the twelfth chapter of the first Pauline letter to the Corinthians. Some of these manifestations and gifts of the Spirit emerged to the public, after a long period of time, in the late 19th century and early 20th century giving birth to Pentecostalism. But as any other novelties it brought strife with itself. Today many Pentecostal and nondenominational charismatic churches are firm doers of this practice. They not only think of glossolalia as an idea or a charismatic practice but hold it to be “a heavenly language that [is] unknown to the speaker but known in the heavenly spiritual realm,” a unique spiritual language through which one can communicate with God.
The earliest mention of Glossolalia or the “speaking of tongues” is found in the Bible. There are many arguments from Paul and Luke on how the gift of tongues was portrayed; one of those was that the gift of tongues was seen as an intelligible language understood by other people the other is of an unintelligible language that needed interpretation. However, the important argument, to which many Pentecostals hold on to, is that “Pentecostal glossolalia [as] argued by Peter… [fulfilled] the prophesy of Joel” that God will pour out his ...
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...ed, but most mentioned worship, praise, prayer, intercession, singing in the Spirit and prophecy; helping the person to build up their faith and find the empowering of the Holy Spirit (Cartledge 45).As a Christian I agree and can relate to the author of Evaluating the Charismatic Movement when he says that we Christians claim to have the Spirit, but make most of our decision without referring to his guidance (Culpepper 75). One can criticize and argue as much possible on how glossolalia and the ecstatic gifts lack a good theological explanation or perhaps that they only exist because the human being lacks faith and needs evidence that God is near but that’s the beauty of the gifts of free will and a personal relationship with God. One can believe and experience whatever we please but at the same time knowing that one day we will be held accountable of our decisions.
In the film “The Holy Ghost People,” right away we get individual accounts of what the “Holy Spirit” is to certain individuals. One woman says the Holy Ghost guides her and keeps her going. The people are very intense about their beliefs, which comes from the religion Pentecostalism, which has a hyper focus on personal experience with God and baptism with the Holy Spirit. We see them in their church, we hear the sermon, and see the ritualistic dances and the way the prayer overcomes them, and causes seizure like motions. We see and hear the prayers for the healing of one woman’s eyesight, and another woman’s back pain. One man, seemingly the pastor, says that “if God is not doing what they ask, people aren’t believing hard enough.” Later we get an account from a woman of how she was nursed back to health as a little girl brought her nutrients, and she believes it was
Heaton, Allan. An Introduction to Pentecostalism: Global Charismatic Christianity. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2013. Print.
David Jauss, the author of Glossolalia, teaches at UALR and in the low-residency MFA in a writing program at Vermont College. His most recent book was You Are Not Here which was written in 2002. Michael Chabon has also written The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, A Model World, Wonder Boys and of course, Werewolves in their Youth. In Glossolalia, it is the gradual relationship between a father and son. At first, Dany shows his dislike for his father but gradually, his hate grows to love. In Werewolves in their Youth, it is about Paul whom first detests Timothy but gradually begins liking him and they become friends. In both if these short stories, the authors sentimentalize family.
William J. Seymour taught his recently discovered “new & improved doctrine of tongues” that was not his own. This doctrine actually originated in his professor, Charles Fox Parham. This was a far cry from Seymour’s background of tongues, which was rooted in the “unintelligible speech” spoken by witch doctors and conjurer men in African traditional religion and Haiti Voodoo. Conversely Parham’s doctrine was supposedly in line with the biblical account of Acts 2.
The Church as a whole debates many concepts that are in the Bible, in both theology and in practice. One of these debates surrounds the gifts that are spoken of in the Bible. In one corner are those who believe that charismatic gifts are alive and well in the church today. The Continuationist view believes that the gifts have continued on through Biblical times and are still relevant for today. In the other corner are those who believe that particular gifts have ceased to be used in the modern church and that they were only given for a particular reason in Biblical times. This view is called the Cessationist. Today each view, and other views in between, and the practice of the gifts in the current culture will be examined for truth, validity, and application by searching through each view and holding fast to the scripture as the final word of authority.
Why would someone pass up the opportunity of receiving a free gift? Then once accepting the gift, why would someone keep that good news to himself or herself? Most people would want to share and tell others how they too could receive the gift. This must be how the disciples felt waiting for the Lord to fulfill his promise to send the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5). They had a gift from God to share, which offered everlasting life through His Son Jesus. The Holy Spirit was to be their helper and give them power to be witnesses for His message of salvation. In Acts 2:1-47, Luke tells about the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost and the Christian mission. The descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles and the Virgin Mary gives them the courage to practice their faith. It confirms their responsibility to follow the teachings of Jesus and spread the Gospel “to the ends of the earth” (1:8).
Throughout the Western culture, Christianity has played a crucial role in the spiritual life of many people. In fact, it is a one of the largest religion in the world with an estimating range from 2 to 3 billion Christians (Religions of the World: Numbers of Adherents; Growth Rates). Spreading with this worldwide religion, the idea that God is at the centre of daily life has a high importance to many people. In the early 20th Century, one of the significant developments of Christianity was the Pentecostal Movement (A Brief History of Christianity). More specifically, Pentecostalism is “the principles and practices of Pentecostal religious groups, characterized by religious excitement and talking in tongues”; its most remarkable detail is its emphasis of the Holy Spirit and the value of prayer (wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn). It has outspread around the world by the people who believed that they had experienced the marvelous moves of God.
... By having them journal their prayers to God daily and encouraging them to read these entries frequently to refresh the memories of those prayers and seek for those that are answered allows for each client to find their way to a spiritual understanding that is not necessarily demonstrated by my impact, but that of God Himself. I am available to answer questions that pertain to the bible, but allow clients to interpret the teaching to their lives and recovery. These approaches allow clients to not rely on my experiences, but on their own encounters and knowledge. Gently guiding them to hear and see how God works in a client’s life is a rewarding and satisfying experience.
There are four main views on the charismatic Spiritual gifts of tongues, prophecy and healing. These four arguments are the Cessationist view, the Open but Cautious view, the Third Wave view and the Pentecostal view. Cessationists believe that the spiritual gifts deemed the charismatic gifts ceased with the completion of the New Testament and that while God will still perform miracles today, the imparting of the miraculous gifts is no longer in effect. On the other side of the spectrum the Pentecostals believe that all the gifts that were bestowed on the original Apostles on the day of Pentecost are still freely given to all believers today as a sign of receiving the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Those who practice the Third Wave view agree with
In Africa, the place of progeneration for those who traveled the Middle Passage, many of the original non-Christian indigenous beliefs and traditions exist still today. These quasi religions exist in the form of spoken word, handed down through oration often seeing embellishment or modification to fit the unique geographical demand. These beliefs are “spoken through tongue and written in hearts”.
When mentioned to the general public, the word “Pentecostalism” generates three diverse responses: confusion, mockery, and tolerance; some people never heard of the word, some people view it as being infamous, and the rest accept it. According to the Oxford dictionary, Pentecostalism “relates to any number of Christian sects emphasizing baptism in the Holy Spirit.” Misconceptions originated from the misunderstanding of the history of Pentecostalism, along with the notion that Pentecostalism is one sect when, in fact, there are many divisions. The largest of these is the teachings of Charismatic’s, which make up the most prevalent part of the denomination and have been the driving force for the assumptions and reputation that Pentecostalism has garnered. To truly understand Pentecostalism, one needs to learn the religions history, the standard beliefs of the various sects, and the contemporary changes that some followers have made in the recent years that have fueled the current fallacy about the belief system.
Biblical witness centers on the Spirits activity of “binding believers to Christ, incorporation them into the church as the body of Christ and equipping the church for mission.” Despite the best effort of the Church to be the hands and feet of Christ it is reassuring to know that the Spirit is still present and working in the hearts of people outside of the church’s work. Without the work of the Spirit in the hearts of believers and throughout the word, humanity would not know the love of God. The Holy Spirit gives liberates and brings new life it unites, encourages and brings hope to a world pledged by darkness.
It is negligence to not know them or to not seek to know what they are. Spiritual gifts are not the same as natural talents, the fruits of the Spirit, spiritual disciplines, or ministry positions. Spiritual gifts are what God has given me after my confession of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior and they are for the benefit of the body of Christ.
In John 16:5-15 Jesus promises to send a helper to comfort and counsel us. In John 16, Jesus refers to the spirit as counsellor who will guide us in our everyday lives. The Christian experience is that we are called by God to join in a church where we share in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, among which are prudence and judgment. 6.
Green, Chris E. "'The Body of Christ, the Spirit of Communion': Re-Visioning Pentecostal Ecclesiology in Conversation with Robert Jenson." Journal of Pentecostal Theology 20, no. 1 (2011): 15-26.