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It's the Holy Spirit that provides Pentecostals with the practice that sets their movement apart from all other evangelical Christian churches: speaking in tongues, or glossolalia.

"The distinguishing feature of classical Pentecostalism is to say that unless you have spoken in tongues, you don't have this baptism in spirit," said Russell Spittler, emeritus professor of New Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary in California.

But during an hour of worship at First Assembly, no one audibly spoke in tongues, and elders in the Assemblies of God are worried about what a younger generation's more practical theology might mean for the future of the practice.

Speaking in tongues is so central to the 3 million-member, Missouri-based Assemblies of God, that denominational leaders voted unanimously to reaffirm it as doctrine, at the church's General Council meeting in August.

Reaffirmation of one of Pentecostalism's central tenets was necessary, according to the resolution voted on at the meeting, because speaking in tongues "has come under certain scrutiny."

Glossolalia has become the church's real battle of the generations. Some young pastors say that while they recognize the foundational importance of speaking in tongues, other features of their faith are more pragmatic and helpful for their flocks.

Hmm