glossolalia

glossolalia (glŏs'əlā`lēə) [Gr.,=speaking in tongues], ecstatic utterances usually of unintelligible sounds made by individuals in a state of religious excitement. Religious revivals are often accompanied by manifestations of glossolalia, and various Pentecostal (see Pentecostalism) movements cite for authority the Acts of the Apostles, which records that on the day of Pentecost the Apostles "were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them ability." There are other New Testament references to the phenomenon. The Corinthian believers overvalued the gift; Paul in 1 Corinthians encouraged the orderly use of the gift and "interpretation" of the utterance so that all might be edified. In Acts, however, the use of the gift produces speech in other human languages as a kind of reversal of the confusion of tongues produced at the Tower of Babel.

Bibliography

See J. P. Kildahl, The Psychology of Speaking in Tongues (1972); G. T. Montague, The Spirit and His Gifts (1974).

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tongues, speaking in

 or glossolalia

Utterances approximating words and speech that are nonetheless generally unintelligible, usually produced during states of trance or delirium. The religious interpretation of the phenomenon is that the speaker is possessed by a supernatural spirit, is in conversation with divine beings, or is the channel of a divine proclamation. Speaking in tongues occurred in ancient Greek religion and is mentioned in the New Testament. According to The Acts of the Apostles, it first occurred among followers of Jesus at Pentecost and reappeared wherever conversion to Christianity occurred. St. Paul claimed to have been adept at it but urged restraint in the practice. Today it is mainly associated with charismatic Protestant movements such as Pentecostalism.

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glossolalia [‚gläs·ə′lā·lē·ə]

(psychology)

Gibberishlike speech; unintelligible jargon.