For every genuine case of spiritual baptism and glossolalia, there were at least 10 that were not authentic. But what about the rare legitimate expression of glossolalia? What are we to make of it? Is there really a Holy Spirit ready to transform those who pray for salvation? Is speaking in tongues truly a sign of spiritual baptism?
I have been asking these kinds of questions for almost 15 years. The answers are not simple. From my own experience, I know the phenomenon of tongues is more than just a psychological disorder or the manifestation of remembered preverbal babble. I am not convinced, however, that tongues is a unique gift of spiritual baptism bequested only to God-fearing Christians. Authentic glossolalia has something more universal and structural to it than we may first suspect. To understand what may be occurring let us examine closely what happened to me.
