Trustees of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, in a nearly unanimous vote, made it official. They will no longer allow anyone to promote speaking in tongues on campus and will not hire any individual who knowingly speaks in tongues. The seminary located in Fort Worth, Texas is part of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC).
The proclamation -- in October 2006 -- came two months after Rev. Dwight McKissic, a seminary trustee, speaking in chapel confessed he spoke in tongues while praying.
During his sermon, he described the experience as his "private prayer language." He told the students at the school he started speaking in tongues while a student at Southwestern in 1981. He described tongues as one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit given to believers.
In their official statement, the trustees said: "Southwestern will not knowingly endorse in any way, advertise, or commend the conclusions of the contemporary charismatic movement including private prayer language. Neither will Southwestern knowingly employ professors or administrators who promote such practices."
The seminary also decided not to release a video of McKissic's sermon on its website or to store the message in its archive of chapel sermons which is normal procedure.
According to one seminary spokesperson, Rev. McKissic's statement flew in the face of SBC's mission board which recently tightened its regulation on speaking in tongues by its missionaries.
Originally the board allowed missionaries to speak in tongues privately, but forbid any public expression. However, in November 2005, it went one step further and forbid their missionaries from speaking in tongues even in private.
Though Rev. McKissic did not mention the board by name, he did question any policy that forbid individuals from ministering the Gospel because they spoke in tongues privately. He described the policy as "extra-biblical."
McKissic pastors the Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, TX which is part of the Southern Baptist Convention. He appealed to SBC to resolve the issue. He stated such moves would disenfrachise the large number of SBC members who speak in tongues.
The issue is creating a groundswell of controversy in SBC. One prominent Baptist minster said on his website, "McKissic set off the political equivalent of a nuclear device."
Editor's Note: Rev Dwight McIssic has since resigned as a trustee for Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.
Source: Seminary pulls plug on trustee's online sermon, Robert Marus (Associated Baptist Press: September 1, 2006) / Texas seminary bans promotion of speaking in tongues (Foxnews.com: October 19, 2006) / Southwestern trustee's sermon on tongues prompts response (bpnews.net: August 30, 2006)
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