I attended a charismatic church for about a year and a half and left when I discovered some major flaws in the movement. My aunt and uncle are both charismatic especially my uncle who sits on his computer all day long and watches prophecies most which don't even come true. The only reasons he will go to church is if a. He thinks he is going to get a prophecy that he will inherit or come upon a bunch of money which has yet to happen and probably won't happen. b. He has a crush on the female pastor who has had major cosmetic surgery and a boob job courtesy of funding from the congregation.

Last night when I visited their house he so tactfully informed me that unless I spoke in tongues I will always be a "deaf and dumb christian" and that I wasn't living up to my spiritual potential because I wasn't operating or seeking the "gifts of the spirit." I asked him what he meant by that and he said that I should be casting out demons, prophesying, etc.

I'm almost through reading the new testament and I haven't found anything that says we have to do these things much less build a church or a whole theology around it. He started to argue with me telling me I wasn't "spirit-filled" and that I would just end up being a "dead Baptist" like my mother and father. I told him that I was probably going to convert to Catholicism and he said "Well you'll just be a dead Catholic."

I asked him what his standards were to determine whether someone was "spirit filled" and he couldn't answer. I told him that nowwhere does Jesus preach that we have to go to church and act like a bunch hyenas every Sunday and that as far as I was concerned that was a very immature proof of our spirituality. I could go to a rock concert to get the same effect.

He told me that I would never grow as a Christian unless I did those things and I told him well a genuine Christian is one who patterns their life after the teachings of Jesus and spreads the gospel and that it doesn't depend upon a bunch of silly theatrics.

He told me I was sadly mistaken and that I was letting "the devil get a hold of my spirit." I then asked him who was behind his spirit and of course he said the Holy Spirit(they all say that). Every time I'm around him he's always talking about some "new movement of the Holy Spirit" or all of the Baptists and Catholics who will soon be joining "the fold." Typical worthless charismababble as far as I'm concerned.

Where exactly do they get all of this crap and decide to build a whole theology around it? What is the best way to handle people like this? I was so mad I just got up and left!