*First and Second Centuries* :
The post-apostolic fathers of the first two centuries believed in the gift
of the Holy Spirit, practiced the laying on of hands to receive the
Spirit,
and testified that the gifts of the Spirit, including tongues, existed in
their day (Heick, I 47; Latourette, 1,194). In the following quotations
from
these men, the English word gifts represents the Greek word charismata in
the original texts ("Charismata", ERE, III, 371), the same word Paul used
for the nine gifts of the Spirit including tongues (1 Corinthians 12).
Clement of Rome (died 100?) reminded the Corinthians that "a full
outpouring
of the Holy Spirit was upon you all". (Clement of Rome, First Epistle to
the
Corinthians, 2, ANF, I, 5).
Ignatius (died 107?) wrote to the church at Smyrna : "Ignatius... to the
Church of God the Father, and of the beloved Jesus Christ, which has
through
mercy obtained every kind of gift, which is filled with faith and love,
and
is deficient in no gift, most worthy of God, and adorned with holiness...
Be
ye strong, I pray, in the power of the Holy Ghost" (Ignatius, Epistle to
the
Smyrnaeans, superscription & 12, ANF I, 86 & 92). He also admonished
Polycarp to pray so that he might "be wanting in nothing, and... abound in
every gift" (Ignatius, Epistle to Polycarp, 2, ANF, I, 99).
The Didache says : "For the Father desireth that the gifts be given to
all"
and also describes prophets who speak "in the Spirit" (See The Teaching of
the Thrive Apostles, 1.5 & 11.7; ANF VII, 377 & 380).
Justin Martyr wrote : "For the prophetical gifts remain with us, even to
the
present time... Now it is possible to see amongst us women and men who
possess gifts of the Spirit of God" (Justin, Dialogue with Trypho, 82 &
88,
ANF, I, 240 & 243).
Irenaeus (130?-202?), Bishop of Lyons, wrote : "[T]hose who are in truth
His
disciples, receiving grace from Him, do in His name perform (miracles). It
is not possible to name the numbers of the gifts which the Church
(scattered) throughout the whole world, has received from God, in the name
of Jesus Christ" (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, 2.32.4, ANF I, 409). He
taught
the necessity of receiving the Spirit and specifically described speaking
in
tongues as evidence of the Spirit :
"[T]he perfect man consists in the commingling and the union of the soul
receiving the spirit of the Father... For this reason does the apostle
declare, 'We speak wisdom among them that are perfect,' terming those
persons 'perfect' who have received the Spirit of God, and who through the
Spirit of God do speak in all languages, as he used [h]imself also to
speak.
In like manner we do also hear many brethren in the Church, who possess
prophetic gifts, and who through the Spirit speak all kinds of
languages...
whom also the apostle terms 'spiritual,' they being spiritual because they
partake of the Spirit" (Ibid, 5.6.1, ANF, I, 531).
Celsus, a pagan, wrote near the end of the second century that Christians
in
his day spoke in tongues. The theologian Origen (died 254?) preserved his
testimony without denying the existence and validity of tongues, and
accepted the gifts of the Spirit for his day (Origen, Against Celsus, 7.9,
ANF IV, 614, quoting Celsus, The Discourse. Origen, Commentary on John,
2.6,
ANF; X, 329)
A group called the Montanists emphasized the Holy Spirit and spoke in
tongues.
*Third Century* :
Tertullian wrote against the heretic Marcion shortly after A.D. 200:
"[T]he
Creator promised the gift of His Spirit in the latter days; and... Christ
has in these last days appeared as the dispenser of spiritual gifts".
Tertullian specifically mentioned the gift of tongues and quoted 1
Corinthians 12/8-11 and Isaiah 28/11 as applicable in his day (Tertullian,
Against Marcion, 5.8, ANF, III, 446). He regarded speaking in tongues as
one
of the marks of a true church :
"Let Marcion then exhibit, as gifts of his god, some prophets, such as
have
not spoken by human sense, but with the Spirit of God... let him produce a
psalm, a vision, a prayer - only let it be by the Spirit, in an ecstasy,
that is, in a rapture, whenever an interpretation of tongues has occurred
to
him... Now all these signs (of spiritual gifts) are forthcoming from my
side
without any difficulty" (Ibid, III, 446-47)
Novatian (died 257?), a presbyter in Rome, wrote about the Holy Spirit :
"This is He who places prophets in the Church, instructs teachers, directs
tongues, gives powers and healings, does wonderful works, offers
discrimination of spirits, affords powers of government, suggests
counsels,
and orders and arranges whatever other gifts there are of charismata; and
thus makes the Lord's Church everywhere, and in all, perfected and
completed" (Novatian, Treatise Concerning the Trinity, 29, ANF V, 641).
Asterius Urbanus (c. 232) indicated that the Christians of his day
expected
the spiritual gifts to remain permanently in the church. Writing against
the
later Montanists, he asked why they no longer had prophets after their
prophet Montanus and his co-workers died. Urbanus noted that the true
church
would always have the prophetical gifts (prophecy, tongues, interpretation
of tongues) : "For the apostle [Paul] deems that the gifts of prophecy
should abide in all the church up to the time of the final advent"
(Asterius
Urbanus, Extant Writings, 10, ANF; VII, 337).
*Fourth and Fifth Centuries* :
Hilary (died 367), bishop of Poitiers, mentioned both tongues and
interpretation of tongues, describing them as "agents of ministry"
ordained
of God (Hilary, On the Trinity, 8.33, NPNF 2nd ser., IX, 147).
Ambrose (340-98), bishop of Milan, taught that all the gifts of 1
Corinthians 12 were part of the normal Christian experience (Ambrose, Of
the
Holy Spirit, 2.8, NPNF 2nd ser., X, 134).
By the late fourth century and early fifth century, Christendom had for
the
most part evolved into what came to be known as the Roman Catholic Church.
Apparently, speaking in tongues had practically disappeared from most
places
in the backsliding church, but the memory of it remained to some extent.
John Chrysostom (345-407), bishop of Constantinople, wrote a comment on 1
Corinthians 12 :
"This whole place is very obscure: but the obscurity is produced by our
ignorance of the facts referred to and by their cessation, being such as
then used to occur hut now no longer take place... Well: what did happen
then? Whoever was baptized he straightway spoke with tongues... They at
once
on their baptism received the Spirit... [They] began to speak, one in the
tongue of the Persians, another in that of the Romans, another in that of
the Indians, or in some other language. And this disclosed to outsiders
that
it was the Spirit in the speaker" (John Chrysostom, Homilies on First
Corinthians, 29, NPNF, 1st ser., XII, 168).
Augustine (354-430) testified that the church in his day did not expect to
speak in tongues when receiving the Holy Spirit, but admitted that this
used
to be the case :
"For the Holy Spirit is not only given by the laying on of hands amid the
testimony of temporal sensible miracles, as He was given in former days...
For who expects in these days that those on whom hands are laid that they
may receive the Holy Spirit should forthwith begin to speak with tongues?"
(Augustine, On Baptism, Against the Donatists, 3.16.21, NPNF 1st ser., IV,
443).
Evidently some "heretics" in Augustine's day believed in receiving the
Holy
Spirit with evidence of speaking in tongues. He sought to refute them by
the
following argument: (1) Tongues are valueless without love (1 Corinthians
13) ; (2) love comes only by the Spirit (Romans 5/5) ; (3) they did not
have
the Spirit because they did not belong to the Catholic Church ; and (4) no
one expected tongues any longer anyway (Ibid, IV, 442)
*The Medieval Age* :
Evidence of tongues in medieval times is sparse, probably because the
Roman
Catholic Church was so effective in silencing "heretics." Nevertheless,
there are reports of speaking in tongues among the following groups :
(1) Waldenses, 1100's, Europe. A group that rejected papal authority and
attempted to base their beliefs solely on the Bible (Carl Brumback, What
Meaneth This? (Springfield, Mo.: Gospel Publ. House, 1947, p. 92)
(2) Albigenses, 1100's, Europe. Another group that rejected papal
authority
and emphasized purity of life (Ibid)
(3) Franciscans and possibly other mendicant orders, 1200's, Europe.
Catholic monks who embraced a very simple lifestyle and traveled
throughout
the countryside preaching ("Tongues, Gift of," ADB, IV, 796; "Tongues,
Gift
of," Smith's Dictionary of the Bible [hereinafter SDB], H. B. Hackett, ad.
(1870; Rpt. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1971), IV, 3310-11).
*The Reformation Era Forward* :
Reports of speaking in tongues increase greatly after the Protestant
Reformation, due to several factors: 1) greater religious freedom, (2)
renewed emphasis on Bible study, apostolic doctrine, conversion, and
spiritual experiences, (3) the invention of printing, and (4) the closer
proximity to our time. According to respected historians, speaking in
tongues has occurred among many groups (from 1500 to 1900):
(1) Anabaptists, 1500's, Europe. One of the four main branches of the
early
Protestant movement (along with Lutherans, Reformed, and Anglicans)
(Bloesch, 11,115-16; Michael Hamilton, The Charismatic Movement (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1975), pp. 73-74; "Pentecostal Churches," EB, XIV, 31).
Unlike other Protestants, the Anabaptists emphasized the restoration of
apostolic patterns of worship and lifestyle, the importance of a
conversion
experience, baptism of believers only, baptism by immersion, total
separation of church and state, the power to overcome sin after
conversion,
and the need to live a holy life. A prominent Anabaptist leader named
Menno
Simons, whose followers became known as Mennonites, wrote about speaking
in
tongues as if it were expected evidence of receiving the Holy Ghost. Many
early Anabaptists worshiped quite demonstratively; in the words of a
secular
history text some participated in "very excited, 'enthusiastic,'
evangelical
practices... what Americans know as 'holy rolling'... (Hamilton, p. 74)
The
congregation sometimes shouted and danced, and always sang hymns with
great
fervor" In view of their doctrine and worship, it is not at all surprising
that speaking in tongues occurred among early Anabaptists (Crane Brinton
et
al, A History of Civilization 3rd ed. (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:
Prentice-Hall, 1967), I, 472, 480).
(2) Prophecy movement, 1500's, England ("Tongues, Gift of," SDB, IV,
3310-11)
(3) Camisards, 1600's and 1700's, southern France (often called the
Prophets
of the Cevennes). A group of Huguenots (French Protestants), mostly
peasants, who resisted the attempts of Louis XIV's government to convert
them to Roman Catholicism (Ibid; "Camisards," ERE, 111,175-176;
"Pentecostal
Churches," EB XIV, 31; Schaff, I, 114; "Tongues, Gift of," ADB, IV, 796).
Many were imprisoned, tortured, and martyred. Observers reported tongues,
uneducated peasants and young children prophesying in pure, elegant
French,
enthusiastic, demonstrative worship, and people "seized by the Spirit."
(4) Quakers, 1600's, England. A group that emphasized spiritual experience
and waited on the moving of the Spirit in their services (Bloesch, II,
115-16; "Charismata," ERE, III, 370; Schaff, I, 114). The early Quakers
received their name because they literally "quaked" under the power of the
Spirit.
(5) Jansenists, 1600's and 1700's, France. A Catholic reform movement.
(6) Pietists (including Moravians), late 1600's, Germany. The Pietists
emphasized spiritual experience and Christian living (Bloesch, II, 11546;
Hamilton, p. 77)
(7) Converts of Camisards, early 1700's, England. Some Camisards fled to
England to avoid persecution, making converts there ("Tongues, Gift of,"
SDB, IV, 3310-11).
(8) Methodists, 1700's, England, particularly in the revivals of Wesley
and
Whitefield and in later American revivals (Ibid ; "Tongues, Gift of," ADB,
IV, 796).
Wesley himself believed that the gifts of the Spirit had practically
disappeared but that a fully restored church would have them again. Howard
Snyder, The Radical Wesley (Downers Grove, Ill.: Inter-Varsity Press,
1980),
p. 96). When a certain Dr. Middleton wrote that the gift of tongues was
absent from later church history, Wesley replied that (1) many ancient
writings are no longer extant, (2) many Christians wrote no books, (3) the
ante-Nicene fathers do not say tongues ceased with the apostles, and (4)
just because tongues was not specifically recorded does not mean it was
not
practiced (John Wesley, "A Letter to the Reverend Dr. Conyers Middleton,"
The Works of John Wesley, 3rd. ed. (Rpt. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House,
1978), X, 54-55).
He said : "Many may have spoken with new tongues, of whom this is not
recorded; at least, the records are lost in a course of so many years"
(Ibid, p. 55).
In reply to the objection that tongues did not exist in his time, Wesley
replied, "It has been heard of more than once, no farther off than the
valleys of Dauphiny" [southern France] (Ibid, p. 56).
We should also note the strong emphasis on repentance and physical
demonstrations in the Methodist revivals. One hostile historian wrote,
"Extreme emotional disturbances, ecstasies and bodily seizures of various
sorts were common in the Wesleyan Revival of the eighteenth century in
England," with people in Wesley's meetings exhibiting "violent motor
reactions... convulsions and shakings" and screaming (Clark, pp. 111-12).
Similar phenomena occurred in the Great Awakening, a period of American
revival in the 1700's led by Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield, and
others
(Ibid, pp. 112-13).
(9) Revivals and Camp Meetings, 1800's, America. It is reported that
physical demonstrations occurred in later American revivals, called the
Second Awakening, which began with camp meetings in Kentucky and swept
across the American frontier (Ibid, pp. 114-17). In the camp meetings
people
"shouted, sobbed, leaped in the air, writhed on the ground, fell like dead
men and lay insensible for considerable periods, and engaged in unusual
bodily contortions," in addition to manifesting the "holy laugh," the
"barks," and the "jerks" (Ibid, pp. 116-17).
Observers at various American revival meetings reported sobbing,
shrieking,
shouting, spasms, falling, rolling, running, dancing, barking, whole
congregations breathing in distress and weeping, and hundreds under
conviction and on the ground repenting (213 William Sweet, The Story of
Religion in America (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1950), pp. 133,
227-31).
These meetings were conducted by Methodists, Baptists, some Presbyterians,
and later the Holiness movement. With such a strong emphasis on repentance
and free, demonstrative worship, it is not surprising that many people
received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues. A great revival swept the
University of Georgia in 1800-1801, and the students "shouted and talked
in
unknown tongues" (Vinson Synan, The Holiness-Pentecostal Movement in the
United States (Grand Rapids : Eerdmans, 1971), p. 25, quoting E. Merton
Coulter, College Life in the Old South (New York, 1928), pp. 194-95).
In many cases tongues speaking went unreported because observers did not
recognize it or its significance and did not distinguish it from other
physical phenomena. One historian said, "Throughout the nineteenth century
speaking in unknown tongues occurred occasionally in the revivals and camp
meetings that dotted the countryside. Perhaps the phenomenon was
considered
just another of the many evidences that one had been saved or sanctified"
(Synan, p. 25 n. 29).
(10) Lutherans, early 1800's, Germany (Hamilton, pp. 84-85). This began
among followers of Gustav von Below.
(11) Irvingites, 1800's, England and America ("Irving and the Catholic
Apostolic Churches," ERE, VII, 422-25; "Pentecostal Churches," EB, XIV,
31;
"Tongues, Gift of," ADB IV, 796; "Tongues, Gift of," IV, 3310-11). The
Spirit fell among the London congregation of a prominent Church of
Scotland
pastor named Edward Irving, beginning with Mary Campbell and James and
Margaret MacDonald. Soon after, Irvingites formed the Catholic Apostolic
Church, which emphasized the gifts of the Spirit. This revival also gave
birth to the Christian Catholic Church and the New Apostolic Church, and
there were Irvingites in the traditional denominations. Unfortunately,
these
groups gradually lost the gifts of the Spirit, degenerated into ritualism,
suffered rapid decline, and are almost nonexistent today. Church historian
Philip Schaff (1819-1893) wrote of observing speaking in tongues in an
Irvingite church in New York :
"Several years ago I witnessed this phenomenon in an Irvingite
congregation
in New York; the words were broken, ejaculatory, and unintelligible, but
uttered in abnormal, startling, impressive sounds, in a state of apparent
unconsciousness and rapture, and without any control over the tongue,
which
was seized as it were by a foreign power. A friend and colleague (Dr.
Briggs), who witnessed it in 1879 in the principal Irvingite church in
London, received the same impression.' (Schaff, I, 115).
(12) Plymouth Brethren, 1800's, England (Bloesch, 1,115-116).
(13) Readers (Lasare), 1841-43, Sweden ("Tongues, Gift of," SDB, IV,
3310-11; Schaff, 1,114).
(14) Revivals, 1859, Ireland (Ibid).
(15) Holiness people, 1800's, Tennessee and North Carolina ("Pentecostal
Churches," EB, XIV, 31).
We should note that one German historian attributed speaking in tongues to
Martin Luther, and a friend of Dwight Moody described some of Moody's
followers speaking in tongues (Brumback, pp. 92-94, quoting Souer [or
Sauer], History of the Christian Church, III, 406 and R. Boyd, Trials and
Triumphs of Faith (1875), p. 402).
However, it is unclear whether either source definitely meant speaking in
tongues as we know it. The Westminster Confession, an important statement
of
Presbyterian Calvinism adopted by English Puritans in 1648, specifically
required that prayer be made in a known tongue (Justo Gonzalez, A History
of
Christian Thought (Nashville: Abingdon, 1975), III, 271).
*Twentieth Century* :
The modern Pentecostal movement began on January 1, 1901, in a small Bible
college in Topeka, Kansas, operated by Charles Parham, a minister with a
background in the Holiness movement. The students began to seek the
baptism
of the Spirit with tongues, and Agnes Ozman was the first student to
experience speaking in tongues. The revival soon spread to many
denominations and around the world. Since then speaking in tongues has
been
verified and documented many times (Robert Dalton, Tongues Like as of Fire
(Springfield, Mo.: Gospel Publishing House, 1945); Ewart, pp. 59-93;
Foster,
pp. 41-69; Stanley Frodsham, With Signs Following (Springfield, Mo.:
Gospel
Publishing House, 1941)).
In the late 1950's a revival of tongues speaking, known as the charismatic
or neo-Pentecostal movement, began among non-Pentecostal churches and has
spread throughout the Protestant, Roman Catholic, and Orthodox world (Don
Basham, Face Up with a Miracle (Springdale, Pa.: Whitaker House, 1967) ;
Hamilton, passim; John Sherrill, They Speak with Other Tongues (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1964)). Some charismatics have joined Pentecostal churches,
others have formed their own churches, and many have remained in their
traditional denominations.
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