George Q. Cannon's Gift of Tongues and Preaching in Native

While serving as a missionary in the Sandwich Islands (Hawai‘i) in 1851, George Q. Cannon experienced a significant spiritual and intellectual transformation regarding the Hawaiian language. Through dedicated study and constant interaction with the native population, he achieved a level of fluency that surpassed his native English. Cannon recorded that his mastery reached a point where he found it easier to speak and pray in Hawaiian than in his mother tongue. In his 1879 memoir, My First Mission, Cannon explained that while he could arguably express ideas with more force in English, his daily usage of Hawaiian caused his thoughts to naturally flow through that channel. This fluency provided him with a profound sense of freedom in his public discourse, which he identified as a critical tool for his success in preaching the restored gospel to the local inhabitants. His deep engagement with the language was not merely academic; it was central to his mission, enabling him to translate the Book of Mormon and build strong, respectful relationships with native converts like Jonathan Nāpela, who assisted him in ensuring that the translation captured the true idiom and spirit of the language.

Fuller account of this event (in the witness’s own words):

I had been studying the language for some time, and had made considerable progress; but I felt that I needed the gift of interpretation. I went to the Lord, and asked Him for the gift of the Hawaiian language. The Lord gave it to me. I had not been long in the islands before I could speak the language with great ease. It is a deal easier for me to speak or pray in native than in my mother tongue; not that I can express my ideas with as much force, as I can in my native tongue, but I am accustomed to using native daily, and therefore my thoughts and ideas naturally seek vent in that channel, and I can speak with greater freedom.