Wednesday Liturgy: Follow-up: Speaking in Tongues at Mass
ROME, SEPT. 7, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Answered by Legionary of Christ Father Edward McNamara, professor of liturgy at the Regina Apostolorum university.
After our mention of the norms of the Brazilian bishops' conference on speaking and praying in tongues during Mass (see Aug. 24), a reader from Indiana wrote:
"In 1975, at the International Conference on the Charismatic Renewal held in Rome, Pope Paul VI allowed Cardinal Suenens to concelebrate a charismatic Mass in St. Peter's. At that Mass, there was most definitely praying in tongues (not 'speaking in tongues') along with singing in tongues by the cardinals, bishops, priests and laypeople all gathered together at this Mass, with the Pope's approval. It was a beautiful time of worship in the heart of the Church. The Pope himself spoke to us after Mass with words of welcome and advice for those involved in the charismatic renewal. It is important to make a distinction, as St. Paul himself does, between speaking in tongues and praying in tongues."
The document I quoted from Brazil clearly made the distinction between praying and speaking in tongues, but finally decided that neither was appropriate in the context of Mass.
The fact that in 1975 Pope Paul VI allowed this concelebration in no way suggests an official approval of all charismatic practices during Mass. In 1975 the Catholic charismatic renewal was barely 8 years old and the Pope was offering cautious encouragement to the movement.
The Church is not hasty in granting definitive approvals or condemnations. It prefers to observe new spiritual realities and orientate little by little. In this sense the 1994 Brazilian document or the 2000 Instruction on Prayers for Healing by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith represent more mature reflections in the light of lived experience.
The aim of such reflections and guidelines is not to condemn the charismatic renewal but to help it achieve its full potential as an integral part of the Church.
After our mention of the norms of the Brazilian bishops' conference on speaking and praying in tongues during Mass (see Aug. 24), a reader from Indiana wrote:
"In 1975, at the International Conference on the Charismatic Renewal held in Rome, Pope Paul VI allowed Cardinal Suenens to concelebrate a charismatic Mass in St. Peter's. At that Mass, there was most definitely praying in tongues (not 'speaking in tongues') along with singing in tongues by the cardinals, bishops, priests and laypeople all gathered together at this Mass, with the Pope's approval. It was a beautiful time of worship in the heart of the Church. The Pope himself spoke to us after Mass with words of welcome and advice for those involved in the charismatic renewal. It is important to make a distinction, as St. Paul himself does, between speaking in tongues and praying in tongues."
The document I quoted from Brazil clearly made the distinction between praying and speaking in tongues, but finally decided that neither was appropriate in the context of Mass.
The fact that in 1975 Pope Paul VI allowed this concelebration in no way suggests an official approval of all charismatic practices during Mass. In 1975 the Catholic charismatic renewal was barely 8 years old and the Pope was offering cautious encouragement to the movement.
The Church is not hasty in granting definitive approvals or condemnations. It prefers to observe new spiritual realities and orientate little by little. In this sense the 1994 Brazilian document or the 2000 Instruction on Prayers for Healing by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith represent more mature reflections in the light of lived experience.
The aim of such reflections and guidelines is not to condemn the charismatic renewal but to help it achieve its full potential as an integral part of the Church.
posted by Chipi Buenafe at
6:42 PM
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