Catholics to speak in tongues?

[polonius]

As many are now aware an new movement is being introduced into the Catholic Church called the Catholic Alpha movement.

Among its unusual teachings is the gift of speaking in tongues which new members are encouraged to do.

For many of us, after being taught to speak Latin in Catholic high school, now do we have to learn another Catholic language? Fortunately this one only uses babble, not real words.

Have any readers acquired proficiency at speaking in tongues?

[Menotu]

As many are now aware an new movement is being introduced into the Catholic Church called the Catholic Alpha movement.

Among its unusual teachings is the gift of speaking in tongues which new members are encouraged to do.

For many of us, after being taught to speak Latin in Catholic high school, now do we have to learn another Catholic language? Fortunately this one only uses babble, not real words.

Have any readers acquired proficiency at speaking in tongues?

I attended a church where speaking in tongues was common place, as was walking up and down the church aisles, passing out in the aisles for a while, etc.
I always thought it was ludicrous beyond measure and a bandwagon attempt for attention.
Because 'tongues' is not a real language, there's nothing to 'learn'. All you need to do it babble incoherently. Who is to challenge you?!?

[Yahwehismywitness]

I went to church and they started falling to ground speaking some crazy mumbo jumbo. What I did also notice was long prayer list for people with diseases especially cancer. They kicked me out because I told them they needed to get rid of demons. True story

[onewithhim]

I also attended two Pentecostal meetings, one in a small room somewhere and another in a church. In the first, suddenly the group started to babble incoherently and I thought it was ridiculous. In neither venue did anyone translate, which goes against the rule Paul mentioned in one of his letters. At the church just about everyone called out something while the pastor was up there trying to speak, and they drowned him out, which I thought was just rude. They rolled around in the pews and the aisles, and it was so silly that my friend and I just got out of there. What on earth was accomplished? Nothing, not even a sermon.


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[Diagoras]

There seems to be so far broad agreement here that modern-day claims of ‘speaking in tongues’ are ridiculous.

If the Biblical stories of people speaking in such as way as to be ‘understood by everyone in their own language’ were true, does that mean that those people claiming to be able to do so today are simply deluding themselves, or are they deliberately lying for some reason?

The former might be simple wish fulfilment (“I want it to be true�), but the latter reason casts the proponents of ‘tongues’ in a very bad light.

Personally, I’d ascribe it to self-delusion, but I’d be interested to hear whether others consider ‘tongues’ to be on a par with false prophecy, for example.

[Checkpoint]

There seems to be so far broad agreement here that modern-day claims of ‘speaking in tongues’ are ridiculous.

If the Biblical stories of people speaking in such as way as to be ‘understood by everyone in their own language’ were true, does that mean that those people claiming to be able to do so today are simply deluding themselves, or are they deliberately lying for some reason?

The former might be simple wish fulfilment (“I want it to be true�), but the latter reason casts the proponents of ‘tongues’ in a very bad light.


Personally, I’d ascribe it to self-delusion, but I’d be interested to hear whether others consider ‘tongues’ to be on a par with false prophecy, for example.

I would say that speaking in tongues, as described in the NT, is not ridiculous, but doing so as claimed by posters to have witnessed, is probably ridiculous.

I would also say that some tongues speaking is false, some is true, and some is self-delusion.

Yes, prophecy is on a par, in regard to the three categories; false, true, and self-delusion.

[onewithhim]

I would say that there is no prophesying today, as that was another thing that Paul said would cease, along with speaking in tongues. Not even the Watchtower organization claims to prophesy. All we need is in the Bible that we have. It has told us what to expect, and we see it unfolding before our eyes.

Speaking in tongues today is, as one person mentioned already, the work of demons.


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[JehovahsWitness]

[Replying to post 26 by onewithhim]

It might be demons (especially if they are cussing in a language they haven't learnt) but it might be people just behaving as is expected in their church. A friend of mine would go to church with her aunt in Jamaica. Well her aunt would be walking to church speaking quite calmly and when the service started she would suddenly drop to the ground and start rolling around. As soon as the service was over she would fix her hat back on her head and be quite calm again. One has to wonder if that was all just theatrics.

JW

[Yahwehismywitness]

Use scripture to understand Peter could understand other languages he was an uneducated fisherman doubt he knew several languages but Yahweh's spirit allowed him to understand.

Another angle to this conversation is maybe they do not have Yahweh's spirit and therefore cannot understand if it is an actual language or just babble

[Tcg]

[Replying to polonius]

There is nothing new nor unique about ecstatic religious experiences:

• Religious ecstasy
  
  Yoga provides techniques to attain an ecstasy state called sam�dhi. According to practitioners, there are various stages of ecstasy, the highest being Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Bhakti Yoga especially, places emphasis on ecstasy as being one of the fruits of its practice.
  
  In Buddhism, especially in the Pali Canon, there are eight states of trance also called absorption. The first four states are Rupa or, materially-oriented. The next four are Arupa or non-material. These eight states are preliminary trances which lead up to final saturation. In Visuddhimagga, great effort and years of sustained meditation are practiced to reach the first absorption, and that not all individuals are able to accomplish it at all.
  
  In the Dionysian Mysteries of ancient Greece, initiates used intoxicants, ecstatic dance and music to remove inhibitions and social constraints.
  
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_ecstasy

The fact that some branches of Christianity have incorporated these practices should not be surprising. Much of religious practice relies on the emotional experiences of its practitioners.


Tcg

[Yahwehismywitness]

I must assume that knowing is better than not knowing, venturing than not venturing; and that magic and illusion, however rich, however alluring, ultimately weaken the human spirit.

Do you accept we as humans have a spiritual plane? It is often established in fasting when digestion and assimilation are at a standstill. Have you heard about those experiences?