I would like to express my great gratitude to Alastair Emblem, leader of ADoRE, for his excellent summary of the teachings of the Catholic Church on this topic. His book, “Pray as you can’t” is also invaluable.
Many Catholics are suspicious of the charismatic renewal and its supernatural gifts on the grounds that it doesn’t seem, well, really CATHOLIC, does it? Isn’t it just for Protestants, in particular for Pentecostals and those many evangelical sects?
It is certainly true that over the centuries since the early Church, the baptism or immersion in the Holy Spirit became the exception rather than the rule, which had applied in the time of the Acts of the Apostles and for the first few centuries after that. This neglect for so long of the Holy Spirit was a grave fault, not only in the Catholic Church but in most mainstream churches. Baptists even believed until only a few years ago that the time for the gifts of the Holy Spirit was limited to the time of the Apostles! But again and again, the Holy Spirit made His presence felt, inspiring people such as St Augustine, St Francis of Assisi, the Methodists, the Pentecostal Church, and finally the Catholic Church. In the last century a succession of Popes from Pope Leo XIII, Pope John XXIII, Pope John Paul II and especially Pope Francis have given the Church more and more encouragement to welcome the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
Indeed, Pope Francis in 2019, when inaugurating CHARIS, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal International Service (the successor to ICCRS), said that he expected CHARIS to do 3 things:
- to share baptism in the Holy Spirit with everyone in the Church. It is the grace you have received. Share it! Don’t keep it to yourselves!
- to serve the unity of the Body of Christ, the Church, the community of believers…
- and to serve the poor and those in greatest need, physical or spiritual…”
If we are to bear fruit from the baptism of the Holy Spirit, we must make full use of all the gifts He gives us – and He is ready to give us all of the gifts that we are ready to use. It is we who are not ready to ask Him for and use some of them, it is not that He does not offer them to us.
But even many Catholics who have attended more or less charismatic prayer groups and to use one person’s words, “have received huge graces through charismatic prayer” have not really bought in to all the opportunities that God is offering to us. They point to Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 12:30 “not all have gifts of healing, not all speak in tongues, not all interpret, do they?” This can lead them (wrongly) to think that not all gifts are offered to all believers. But the truth is that they are freely offered, but some of us are not ready to receive them. My own opinion is that we should actively ask the Holy Spirit for all of the ones for which we are ready and willing to use – which may be at different times of our lives.
The importance of tongues, and other signs of baptism in the Spirit
The gateway gift to all the other gifts is normally the gift of tongues. This was a gift which existed at least from the Exodus and is described in Numbers 11:24-29. Like many other gifts, in the Old Testament it was only given to specific individuals and it was often (usually?) only for a period of time. This was the case with Saul, as described in 1 Samuel 10. David also asked for the Holy Spirit not to be taken from him. Tongues are described in Isaiah 28:11-12 and in Acts 2:17-18 Peter explains that all the believers speaking in tongues are a fulfilment of Joel 2:28-29. And indeed, it is after Pentecost that the Holy Spirit is given to ALL who put their trust in Jesus, first as tongues of flame and tongues in the languages of all who came to hear the disciples, then as a power that shakes the whole building. In Acts 10 it comes on Cornelius and all of his household as they hear the Good News from Peter: the sign of their receiving the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues, which proves that even the Gentiles can share in the Holy Spirit and can be demonstrably saved. As the ICCRS Doctrinal Commission said, quoting Acts 11:18, “This evidence was crucial for those who had challenged Peter, who when they “heard this, stopped objecting and glorified God, saying, ‘God has then granted life-giving repentance to the gentiles too’”
In Mark 16, Jesus makes it clear that the gift of tongues, as well as driving out demons and healing the sick are for every believer: 16:16-18 says “WHOEVER who trusts and is immersed will be saved…and these signs will accompany those who trust: in my name they will drive out demons, speak with new tongues, not be injured if they handle snakes or drink poison, and heal the sick by laying hands on them.”
These signs were taken very seriously indeed by the early Church and when any were absent, the apostles would try to rectify this: Two examples are given in Acts:
- When (in Acts 8) the Samaritans did not receive the obvious signs of the presence of the Holy Spirit (such as the gift of tongues) in spite of the great miracles following Philip’s proclamation of the Gospel to them, the apostles considered that they had not received the Holy Spirit and they sent Peter and John to them, who laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.
- In Ephesus, after Apollos had made a number of converts, as Acts 19:1-6 describes:
While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples 2 and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when[a] you believed?”
They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?” “John’s baptism,” they replied.
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.” 5 On hearing this, they were baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.
These passages have been used by the Pentecostalists and many other charismatics from other evangelical churches to claim that tongues are ALWAYS given to EVERYONE who is immersed in the Holy Spirit. But this is not what the Catholic Church teaches: The ICCRS Doctrinal Commission comments: “The observable evidence of baptism in the Holy Spirit was an essential part of the Church’s understanding of the Christian life, even though no single effect—such as tongues, for example— was ever considered a “litmus test” of having received the Holy Spirit.”
I can testify to this, because God first immersed me in the Holy Spirit while I was driving my car on the motorway in Germany, after I had just realised that all my many qualifications, my great career culminating in my position as a Finance Director, and my loving wife and sons, all of these wonderful things were so much rubbish compared with actually knowing Jesus personally and belonging to Him. (I did not realise that I was paraphrasing Philippians 3:4-9!) But I did not receive the gift of tongues for nearly another 2 years. I simply did not realise its importance or its great value.
The Catholic Church’s view is that we receive the Holy Spirit at our baptism. But Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa also taught that “Catholic theology recognises the concept of a valid but “tied” sacrament. A sacrament is called tied if the fruit that should accompany it remains bound, [or unreleased,] because of certain blocks that prevent its effectiveness.” The fruits of the Holy Spirit are “tied” until we have first given our lives to Christ (the Kerygma, which Pope Francis taught about in Evangelii Gaudium.) They are then fully untied when we are baptised or immersed in the Holy Spirit. These two events occurred in my own life 22 years after my infant baptism, while immersion in the Spirit occurred another 13 years later! So 2 years was not long to wait from baptism in the Holy Spirit to speaking in tongues! And other gifts (“greater gifts” according to Paul in 1 Corinthians followed almost immediately after I started speaking in tongues. I do not know that this happens for everyone, but I expect that it is very common.
| Causal Event | Change in Behaviour | Impact | |
| 1 | Infant Baptism | Baptism seals the infant but the change also relies on parents. | Spirit present, but impact tied until the Spirit is blown into flame in steps 2 and 3. |
| 2 | Kerygma (giving one’s life to Christ) | Forgiving, loving & praying for one’s enemies. Trust begins. | Seeing prayers clearly answered;
Some ability to hear God’s voice. |
| 3 | Baptism/immersion in the Spirit (for the first time) | Immediate: near drunkenness or falling over (“slain in the Spirit”);
Much more trust in Christ. | A sense of God’s presence;
Hearing God’s voice clearly. Openness to go on being filled/immersed. |
| 4 | Speaking in Tongues (a result of immersion in the Holy Spirit) | Trusting God with the speech centres of our brains;
Readiness to pray for a much longer time than before; Praying for what God wants us to pray. | Hearing God even more clearly;
Receiving other gifts of the Spirit and readiness to ask for them; Greater intimacy in prayer; “Praying at all times in the Spirit” (Eph 6:18) and for what God wants us to pray for; Power in healing and in spiritual warfare; Zeal & confidence to evangelise. |
| 5 | Receiving the “greater gifts” (1 Cor 12:31) | Greater trust that God would do mighty supernatural works;
Greater ability to hear what to pray for. | Releasing those supernatural works – interpreting tongues; giving words of knowledge; prophesying; healing the sick; casting out demons. |
Let me tabulate the impact of these four events or stages in my own life. I would suggest that these may the normal impacts when the four events are separated by such very significant time. I have excluded the step of confirmation because it was not, for me, followed immediately by immersion in the Spirit (unlike the disciples in Ephesus) and did not seem to have any effect at all on me.
Many of these impacts (and more) are quoted in the Doctrinal Commission – International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services 2017. Of course, the order may not be always as shown in the table. For example, where baptism takes place as an adult, it usually follows the kerygma or surrender to Christ, rather than preceding it. (In Acts 10:44-48 with Cornelius, it followed baptism in the Spirit.) It is also possible for all these events to happen on a single occasion, as described repeatedly in Jackie Pullinger’s book, “Chasing the Dragon”, where kerygma and the laying on of hands resulted immediately in people speaking in tongues and being delivered of drug addiction.
Why should we all pray in tongues?
Paul is clear that the gift of tongues is less important than prophecy or the other gifts that lead up to prophecy – the interpretation of tongues to reveal the prophetic message, and words of knowledge that clearly demonstrate that one has heard directly from God. These gifts are the “greater gifts” because they have a direct, demonstrably beneficial impact on other believers. But Paul still says in 1 Corinthians 14:5 “Now I want you ALL to speak in tongues, but even more to prophesy. The one who prophesies is greater than the one who speaks in tongues unless someone interprets, so that the church may be built up.” (And indeed, interpretation converts a message in tongues into a convincing prophecy. So if one is in a group or church where one knows that there are others who can interpret, there is no reason not to give a message in tongues.)
But there are many, even after the baptism of the Holy Spirit, who do not speak in tongues. One thing that held me back from asking for the gift of tongues was that I did not see why Paul wanted it for us all. What were the benefits, I asked? And Jackie Pullinger initially had exactly the same reaction, though later, it was to play a vital, essential part of her ministry and that of her converts. So it is worth mentioning some of the reasons why this particular gift is a key gateway one and is such an essential support for our whole prayer life and our ministry.
Prayer in tongues (alone or in the presence of others):
This is something that is a sign that will be associated with all who trust in Jesus – Mark 16:17
- It is valuable for a person’s own spiritual growth (1 Cor 14:4,18)
- By enabling us to hear much more clearly what God is saying to us, it is a powerful agent in assisting us to do what God is telling us to do, and to identify (He tells us!) what we need to change in ourselves in order to be more like Him.
- It enables us to “pray constantly” (1 Thess 5:17) or “pray at all times in the Spirit” (Eph 6:18) and the Spirit prays through us when “we do not know how we ought to pray” (Rom 8:26-27)
- We surrender to the Spirit and are changed as He prays through us: Rom 8:26-27; 1 Cor 14:2
- It is a sign of the presence of the Spirit to those who do not yet have this gift, making it clear to them that we can lay hands on them and impart (and encourage them in) the freedom to use it. Recently, when we were praying in tongues for the healing of others, a lady at our prayer group was overjoyed to hear us because she had wanted this gift for a long time.
- It is also a sign of the Spirit to unbelievers – especially if they then recognise that we are speaking in their language. This breaks down any resistance to conversion and baptism in the Holy Spirit in a way that only miracles can do. In the first Pentecost, “about 3,000 were added to their number.” I know of one who was given an unusual Romanian country dialect, another who was given modern Greek – his wife’s language, which healed the rift in their marriage, and one or two foreigners who were given English as their tongue.
- It releases us to ask for the “greater gifts” (such as prophecy, healing and casting out demons) and enables us to hear God’s voice and know more precisely what to pray for.
A message in tongues for the community
Not every believer will be given such a message to deliver, and one should only be given if the recipient knows or suspects that someone in the community will be able to interpret it.)
- The message in tongues is a clarion call, a “heads up” signal to all to pay attention to what is being said. It lends greater credibility and acceptance of the prophecy that follows.
- If there are any present who do not themselves speak in tongues, it is also a demonstration of the supernatural presence of the Holy Spirit in the midst of the community and may open them up to a greater grace in their own lives.
- If there are several interpretations, it will demonstrate that the interpretations are correct, because they will normally be similar and/or complementary to each other.
- It may be of value to the whole community if someone who first is confident that he or she has receive an interpretation waits for a moment to deliver it, because it may pave the way for someone who has not previously interpreted to do so first. This is how I first received this gift.
- When we are commanded by God to give such a message in tongues, we should always wait for a while after delivering it until there has been plenty of time for people to receive and announce interpretations. These may well have the impact of prophecy or words of knowledge which we could not possibly ourselves have know and must have heard from the Lord – just like Jesus with the Samaritan woman at the well.
Singing in tongues – a way of expressing our praise of God and our joy in His presence
- Praying in tongues is speaking in one’s “secret place” with God, but it can also have expression in song, expressing the joy that we feel in God’s presence and the emotion that we feel, the overpowering of love that God puts into our hearts. This can be alone or with a group of people
- Communal praise using tongues can bring groups closely together with a sense of harmony, which is very unifying. There is that danger that this use of tongues can be preferred to the more important use which is in delivering messages that can, with interpretation, be turned into prophecy, but the joy in praising God in such a way is such a deep and rich experience that it should not be resisted. It is described by many early Christian writers.
Making progress with tongues – distinguishing between translation and interpretation
- When we first receive the gift of tongues, it may be very rudimentary, like baby talk. Some charismatics seem to feel that this is enough, but the more one uses this gift, the wider one’s “vocabulary” and the more complex one’s “syntax” seems to become. Regular practice is therefore essential in getting and delivering the full value of this precious gift.
- Those of us who already spoke many languages face the danger that we tend to try to recognise this syntax and elements of the vocabulary, and try to translate it as we can translate French, German, Spanish or Chinese. This is a great mistake. If we listen carefully to what God is saying through us, we may be able to perceive the gist of what is being said. This is how we can then interpret it – through a rough paraphrase, relying on hearing what God is revealing what the tongues are saying. But when I tried to translate what my first tongue was saying, the Holy Spirit changed the tongue to one that I could not understand!
- It is important to gradually increase the amount of time we speak in tongues. In “Chasing the Dragon”, Jackie Pullinger only started hearing whom to approach and seeing miracles happen after she was regularly praying for at least a quarter of an hour in tongues. In the last year I have found exactly the same.
Moving on to the the “greater gifts” and evangelisation
- First of all, “moving on” does not mean leaving tongues behind. It simply means using our gift of tongues and our trust in God to ask for and practise those other gifts that have a direct (as opposed to an indirect) beneficial impact on others. These are what Paul wanted us to “eagerly seek”. But what it does mean is that we should be actively asking for those “greater gifts” and we will receive them when we are ready to use them.
- Whether we are praying on our own but much more when we pray for healing, or are delivering a word of prophecy, it may be helpful to alternate between tongues and our mother tongue or the language of the person for whom we are praying. We can also alternate between both of these and singing in tongues.
- In spiritual warfare, we may find it useful to remember that praying in tongues is the only reliable way of praying only what God wants to pray through us. So if we are then casting out demons, what the Spirit was saying may be hidden from the demon and at the same time, we will have been strengthened to be ready to cast them out. (God has used me to cast out demons on only two occasions. We should keep our eyes on God and not seek out demons, but should be ready to act with Christ’s authority when we do encounter them.)
- When we pray for those who give their lives to Jesus, it is good to encourage them at the same time to ask for the gift of tongues straight away. If they have truly surrendered to the Lord, they will probably receive both the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gift of tongues at the same time. This will anchor them in their trust that they have indeed received both these gifts and will receive more in due course.
- If you ask for the gift of tongues and do not receive it, do not be concerned, because you will probably receive it sooner or later – instead, ask for “the greater gifts” – prophecy, words of knowledge and any others that you are ready to use. And keep on praying!
- Always remember that (as Pope Francis has taught), ALL charisms are given to individuals to use in love for the benefit of all, and to sanctify the Church.
The above is an account of my personal experience with the Gifts of the Spirit, which enabled me to experience many miracles. I also made great use of Alastair Emblem’s article for ADoRE. To you all, I wish more trust in Jesus, and the courage and desire to ask for tongues and as many other spiritual gifts as you are ready to use, to “do the same works” as Jesus. (John 14:12)
Alastair Emblem’s bibliography of further reading, plus five added by me;
Bibliography of further reading
- More detailed explanation of the difference between speaking and praying in tongues: “Glossolalia, Xenolalia and Xenoglossia Q&A by Doctrinal Commission – International Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services, 2015.” Link here.
- The link to Alastair Emblem’s article is: https://files.secure.website/wscfus/9860907/30909504/understanding-the-gift-of-tongues.pdf
- “A Practical Guide to the Gift of Tongues” – John Vaughan-Neil (ISBN978-1-903623-47-3)
- “Sounds of Wonder – 20 centuries of Praying in Tongues and Lively Worship in the Catholic Tradition.” By Deacon Eddie Ensley Ph.D. (ISBN 978-1-61956-172-4)
- “Renew Your Wonders – spiritual gifts for today” (esp. Chapter 9) by Damian Stayne (ISBN 978-1-912237-00-5)
- “Towards a fuller life in the Holy Spirit” (esp. chapters 4 and 5) by Charles Whitehead. (ISBN 978-1-903623-50-3)
- ““Baptism in the Holy Spirit” by ICCRS Doctrinal Commission (ISBN 978-1-903623-67-1)
- “Pray as you can’t” Alastair Emblem, available through Amazon (ISBN 979-8-41769-454-7)
- An excellent video by Fr Gareth Leyson, Sion Community for Evangelism: “GIFTS OF TONGUES AND MIRACLES”
- “Chasing the Dragon” Jackie Pullinger (ISBN 978-0-340-90880-8)
- The Called & Gifted website is here: https://calledandgifted.org.uk/
- “Intoxication of the Spirit” – Raniero Cantalamessa OFM (ISBN 10: 0867167130 / ISBN 13: 9780867167139) – was recommended by Gerry Penfold of Called & Gifted on ADoRE on 22 Feb 2025). You can watch Gerry Penfold’s talk here: https://youtu.be/ko-Aft8q3FA?si=a6BoBuVCQ7_PeCW0