Rom 12:6–8: the seven Χαρίσματα and their cultic antecedents
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Date
10/07/2019Author
McCaskill, Teresa Lee
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Abstract
This thesis investigates the transition gentile Christ-followers faced as they emerged as monotheistic
worshipers in first-century Rome. Abandoning myriad cultic practices, this group must
now find appropriate activities through which they may engage with God, their own community,
and others. Paul's Roman epistle affirms their new commitment, and also re-orients their formerly
polytheistic perspectives, arguably in recognition of their uniquely gentile dilemma. I contend
that Paul accordingly presents the seven gifts that appear in Rom 12:6–8 as functional replacements
for previous cultic practices. As examples of the "reasonable worship" that Paul advocates in
Rom 12:1–2, the χαρίσματα that appear in Rom 12:6–8 are ideas that were already known to Roman
gentiles. Paul thus re-purposes familiar concepts to help this burgeoning group progress in their
new Christ-following belief system.
I begin by situating the χαρίσματα within the purview of modern scholarship. Here I find a pronounced
lack of consensus about how the χαρίσματα in Rom 12:6–8, which have sometimes been
viewed under the umbrella term “spiritual gifts,” should be defined and understood. The lack of
textual detail within these verses has presented scholars with real challenges in understanding
Rom 12:6–8. This is because Paul offers little description as to these gifts, nor does he tell us much
about how they ought to be practiced. Commentators state their opinions about Paul's purposes in
writing his letter, but few attempt to show how the χαρίσματα support his agenda. Perhaps because
of Paul's own Jewish heritage and debate over the ethnic make-up of his addressees, scholars have
paid attention to the Jewish background of the χαρίσματα. However, the Greco-Roman context
within which Paul's gentile auditors lived has largely been ignored. It is this gentile audience and
context that are the focus of my thesis.
After identifying gaps in the scholarship as concerns the seven χαρίσματα, I turn to the verses
that precede Paul's list, especially Rom 12:1–2. I argue that these verses create a backdrop from
which the χαρίσματα may emerge and ultimately be assessed. This backdrop establishes the
primacy of worship for Paul's audience as a means for them to live out a life that reflects their devotion
to God. The χαρίσματα serve as practical examples of how they may do this.
I then look at various aspects of divine-human interaction from the standpoint of the first-century
milieu within which Paul's Roman addressees lived. Here I draw upon primary literary and
material evidence to sketch a portrait of the activities and viewpoints commonly associated with
traditional gentile ritual and cult. I conclude this chapter by hypothesizing that all seven of the
χαρίσματα Paul lists in Rom 12:6–8 have cultic antecedents that would have been familiar to his Roman
audience. More specifically, I argue that in his letter, Paul is addressing a community with a
polytheistic past that is transitioning into a world that he perceives to be filled with apocalyptic
exigencies. This will permit me to examine, in the seven chapters that follow, the purposes and potential
applications for the seven χαρίσματα in light of their arguably pagan cultic roots.
Beginning with a chapter on προφητεία, and continuing on to chapters on διακονία, ὁ διδάσκων,
ὁ παρακαλῶν, ὁ μεταδιδοὺς, ὁ προϊστάμενος, and ὁ ἐλεῶν, I test my hypothesis by investigating each of
these words within literary and material evidence from the ancient world. I take particular aim at
instances where these seven words are used in contexts that speak to divine-human relations.
Each chapter is concluded with my own translation of the gift under consideration based upon my
analysis of relevant Greco-Roman sources.
I then compile the data that I have gathered as to the cultic antecedents of the seven
χαρίσματα in Rom 12:6–8 and draw several conclusions. I note how the seven χαρίσματα each represent
a portal into some of the various forms of divine-human interaction that existed in firstcentury
Rome. To a gentile recipient of Paul's letter, the seven χαρίσματα in Rom 12:6–8 can be
shown to relate to the traditional state cult, as well as to popular gods such as Apollo, Hermes, and
Dionysus. There are also identifiable connections with household gods and the imperial cult. I argue
that in presenting familiar concepts in the form of gifts from God, Paul has proposed a construct
that fills the ceremonial vacuum that this audience may have felt in transitioning from their
former cultic practices.
In this regard, the χαρίσματα are not only practices that reflect worship, they are also activities
that can further Paul's missional purpose. With an eye to a forthcoming world where time is of the
essence because of Christ's imminent return, and in which the gospel must therefore be quickly
spread, this urgency creates the resonant plane against which Paul’s message can project.