Spirit with Sevenfold Gifts
St. Mary's Iffley, Oxford, UK
My dear friends,
In the Bodhisattva path, we are trained to perceive all sacred scripture with the eyes of awakened compassion and wisdom. We listen for the voice of the Holy Spirit as the voice of bodhicitta, calling us into a life of service rooted in love, non-attachment, and clarity. When the Apostle speaks, we hear the gentle urging of the universal Christ-nature, guiding us into the field of merit and transformation.
on the basis of God's mercy,
to present your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and acceptable to God,
which is your reasonable act of worship.
- Romans 12:1
The offering of the body as a living sacrifice echoes the Bodhisattva's vow to use this precious human life in the service of others. In both traditions, the body is not to be cast away in austerity, nor indulged in heedlessness, but consecrated through acts of loving service. This is the worship that transcends rituals: the lived expression of compassion in thought, word, and deed.
but be transformed by the renewing of the minds,
so that you may discern what is the will of God
-- what is good and acceptable and perfect.
- Romans 12:2
In lojong, we train in transforming the mind through contemplation of the Dharma. Paul’s call to renewal mirrors this training. The mind, left untended, conforms to the distractions and delusions of the world. But when cultivated through meditation, ethical action, and reflection on emptiness and love, it becomes the instrument of divine discernment, revealing the will of God as the path of awakened compassion.
not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think
but to think with sober judgment,
each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
- Romans 12:3
To walk the Bodhisattva path is to see clearly the nature of self. Sober judgment arises when the self is no longer inflated by ego-clinging nor deflated by self-hatred, but held with compassionate awareness. Each being is a vessel of grace, with their own karmic storehouse and potential for awakening. To compare or compete is delusion; to rejoice in the unique path of each is wisdom.
and not all the members have the same function,
so we, who are many, are one body in Christ,
and individually we are members one of another.
- Romans 12:4-5
The interdependence of the body of Christ is none other than the interbeing taught by the Buddha. In dependent origination, no phenomenon exists in isolation. Likewise, no Bodhisattva acts alone. The suffering or healing of one is the concern of all. Thus, we abandon pride and separation, and enter into the luminous body of compassion, where all distinctions dissolve in Christ’s love.
prophecy, in proportion to faith;...
- Romans 12:6
The teachings on skillful means (upaya) in the Mahayana speak of adapting the Dharma to each person’s capacity and karmic disposition. Paul names the same principle: gifts are varied, yet each is empowered by faith. Whether in speech or silence, in prophetic fire or quiet endurance, what matters is the alignment of the heart with the wisdom of the Spirit.
the teacher, in teaching;...
- Romans 12:7
To serve is itself a form of meditation. Ministry and teaching, when undertaken without grasping for recognition, become the actions of bodhicitta, the "Awakening Mind" of love, compassion, and wisdom. The true teacher is a mirror of Dharma, pointing not to the self, but to the liberating truth. Likewise, the minister acts not as a savior, but as a humble servant of the sacred work of healing.
the giver, in sincerity;
the leader, in diligence;
the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
- Romans 12:8
Each function of the awakened life is sanctified by the spirit in which it is offered. Encouragement offered with joy, giving free from attachment, leadership with effort and perseverance, compassion with cheerfulness — all of these are attributes of the Bodhisattva in action. To cultivate these is to fulfill the vow to live for the benefit of all beings.
Thus, we see that the Apostle’s teaching is in perfect accord with the path of awakening. Let us present ourselves, not with pride, but with willingness, as instruments of the Spirit, as vessels of bodhicitta. May our minds be renewed, our actions purified, and our hearts opened in service to all, in Christ and in the Dharma.