FAQ on Gift of Praying in Tongue

FAQs about Praying in Tongues

12 things you need to know about praying in tongues

1. What is gift of tongues?

Gift of tongues is gift in form of utterance (might be linguistic or not), which comes from the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

According to its purpose, gift of tongues is classified to:

• Praying in tongues

A person is praying in tongues when the gift of tongues helps the person to express prayers or praises to God. The prayer doesn’t need interpretation.

It’s mainly meant for self-edification and growth of personal relationship (communication) with God.

• Speaking in tongues

It’s meant to convey messages to the community (or an individual in the community).

It must be accompanied by gift of interpretation in order for the whole community to understand the message and benefit from it (1 Corinthians 14:27-31).

Usually it’s only received by few people in the community who are spiritually mature, under the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

As far as our discussion is concerned, we shall limit our discussion in Praying in Tongues only.

2. What is Praying in Tongues?

St. Paul described praying in tongues as a gift of personal prayer. And it’s meant for the growth of individual prayer life, by bringing us to a deeper experience of prayer.

“For one who speaks in a tongue speaks not to men but to God; for no one understands him, but he utters mysteries in the Spirit.” (1 Corinthians 14:2).

Praying in tongues is also one of the ways to praise God. It allows a person to praise God beyond his/her vocabulary.

“And as well as this, the Spirit too comes to help us in our weakness, for, when we do not know how to pray properly, then the Spirit personally makes our petitions for us in groans that cannot be put into words.” (Rom 8:26).

Praying in tongues is commonly received by many people, especially in their early stage of their life in the Spirit.

After a person yield to this gift, it becomes their permanent gift. And it helps a person to grow in faith when he/she exercise the gift in their prayer life. In many cases people don’t exercise this gift, and after some time they fell that they have lost this gift, but this is not true. Once a person received this particular gift, he/she won’t lose it.

3. Do Catholics pray in tongues?

Yes, praying in tongues has always been part of Catholic Church. As the Bible said that the early church prayed in tongues.

“They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak different languages as the Spirit gave them power to express themselves.” (1 Acts 2:4)

St. Paul himself said, “I give thanks to God because I speak in tongues more than all of you…” (1 Corinthians 14:18).

Moreover, the Second Vatican Council (Lumen Gentium, Chapter 2) affirmed the legitimacy of the Gifts of Holy Spirit (charisms). The practice of praying tongues can be still observed in today’s Catholic community.

4. Will everyone be able to pray in tongues?

Father Robert de Grandis in his book “The Gift of Tongues” mentioned that this gift is for all. “These are the signs that will be associated with believers: in my name they will cast out devils; they will have the gift of tongues; (Mark 16:17)”

Once we are baptized, the Holy Spirit is inside us already. And if we allow the Spirit to work in our lives, we will be able to see that this gift has been given to us. Yet most of us have not “yielded” it. So the keyword is to yield this gift that is already inside of us.

5. How do I know that it comes from God? How can I know that it is not me who makes it up?

We can know by looking at the fruits of this gift. All good things must come from God, because God is the source of good. Thus, if it’s a true gift, it should bring you to the ultimate goodness, which is bringing you closer to God. For example, people who got the gift of tongues will have more longing for Him and thus, start to pray more often.

In long term, all Gifts of the Holy Spirit should accommodate a person to obtain the fruits of the Holy Spirit, which are mention in Galatians.

 “On the other hand the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and self-control; no law can touch such things as these.” (Galatians 22:23)

It is also good to exercise the gift in community, because the community can help to recognize the authenticity of a gift. Even though prayer in tongues is primarily meant for self-edification, it should still bring a positive influence on the community.

“Do not quench the Spirit, do not despise prophesying, but test everything; hold fast what is good” (1Th 5:19-21).

6. Why should I pray in tongues?

Because, it’s God’s plan as revealed in Scripture.

“Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. (Ephesians 6:18)”.

And it gives a lot of benefits for the individual, namely:

-         It is the doorway to other charisms. A person who prays in tongues finds it easier to yield to other charisms (that is given by the work of the Holy Spirit).

-         It is a way to reach a more intimate prayer with God

-         It is a personal, concrete sign of God’s action within a person

-         It is a powerful weapon against Satan.

-         It is an effective means of intercessory prayer, especially when the person does not know exactly for what to pray. (Romans 8:26)

7. How if I haven’t prayed in tongues yet?

Gift of tongues is given to make us closer to God and to have a new level of prayer lives. Even if you haven’t prayed in tongues now, you should desire this gift, because it will arouse longing for the giver (God) as well. Always remember that the best thing of a gift is the giver (God).

8. How if I am not comfortable to pray in tongues?

The feeling of uncomfortable may arise because of doubts inside our minds. To solve this, we should clear any doubts by consulting to people who already have the gifts which particular area that we feel uncomfortable with, and be open to the gift.

Another possible reason is because it doesn’t sound familiar, thus the unfamiliar feeling arouse uncomfortable feeling. If this is the case, we should remember that the sounds are praises and prayer to God; therefore we should concentrate on communicating and praising God, not on sounds and syllable, nor on reasoning.

The same analogy goes for confession. In confession, we may feel not comfortable when we must mention our sins to the priests; however, we do not stop from doing it because we believe that confession helps us to be closer to Him and that the center of confession is God’s forgiveness, not our sins.

9. What do I say while I am praying in tongues?

 “A person praying in tongue does not understand what he is saying, his mind contributes nothing.” (1 Corinthians 14:14). Therefore, only God knows the meaning of our prayer in tongues.

We might ask “If I do not understand it, why do I need to pray it?” When we were still babies what we did was to cry all the time. If we were hungry, we started to cry. If we did not like the noise around us, we started to cry. If we were afraid, we started to cry. But amazingly was that our mother understood our cries. Even if it seemed to us it’s just a cry and we did not really understand it (as babies), yet our mother knew that we were hungry and she started to feed us. This is the same thing with the gift of tongues. We might not understand it, yet the Lord listens to our spirit as we pray.

10. Is it under my control? When should I pray in tongues?

Praying in tongues, as in any other prayer, is under the control of the person who use it. Prayer of tongues is always under control of the one speaking and can be turned on and off at will. It is always there to be used at a person’s maturity under the guidance of wisdom.

There is no rule on how or when we should pray in tongues. Like other form of prayer, it can be done anywhere. However, as has been said before, use it under the guidance of wisdom.

11. How to yield to pray in tongues?

No specific way for someone to receive the gift of tongues. Some may receive the gift through personal prayer. For some, Outpouring of the Holy Spirit is one of the common ways where people receive this gift. However, openness for this gift is essential to allow the Spirit to work within us and to take control of our hearts and minds. And the next step after we open our heart is to start believing and start praying in tongues.

12. So, what should I do now?

These 3 things will be helpful for you:

• Desire this gift

Sincerely desire this gift so that you can praise God beyond your own words. All who pray in tongues find a new dimension in their relationship with God. You too, should yearn for this.

• Clear all doubts about praying in tongues

Get someone who has prayed in tongues for a while, tell him/her your doubts, and ask him/her to pray for your openness towards this gift.

Many people need their intellectual side to be satisfied before they could open themselves to yield this gift. If you are one of them, then find a way to satisfy your questions on this gift.

• Open your mouth!

Literally, you need to open your mouth, verbalize sounds or syllable in order to yield for the gift of praying in tongues. God will not force you to open your mouth and force you to praise Him in tongues; you have the decision to do it.

When the prayer minister/ leader pray for yielding of this gift, keep your mind focus in praising God, and at the same time, verbalize your praises with any syllable. Do not analyze the sound! And the Holy Spirit will take over your praises with gift of praying in tongues.

Prepared by: NTU CPG LISC Committee for LISC 2010

Reference:

A Key to Charismatic Renewal in the Catholic Church by Rev. Vincent M Walsh

The Gift of Tongues by Fr Robert de Grandis, S.S.J.