Spirit baptism: a phenomenological study of religious experience

Abstract

Pentecostalism and glossolalia have received much attention from the social sciences in recent decades. Although much has been learned from research, little attention has been given to initial Spirit baptism (SB) from a descriptive point of view, and none has been given from a phenomenologically oriented approach – which was the concern of this study. To investigate the experience of SB, we conducted phenomenological interviews with eight participants who were residents in a 12-month drug rehabilitation program sponsored by an independent Pentecostal-oriented congregation in the southeastern USA. A hermeneutic and thematic analysis found six major themes to emerge consistently across all eight transcribed protocols that described the meaning of the experience of SB: (1) “Connection with God”; (2) Physical Sensations; (3) Magnified Feelings; (4) “Prayer Language”; (5) Certain Knowing; and (6) “Hard to Describe.” The findings are discussed in relation to existential grounds of experience and spiritual transformation.