Become weak with the weak

For the weak I made myself weak. I made myself all things to all people in order to save some at any cost.

But who are the 'weak'? They are Christians who had a  fragile conscience and not much knowledge and who were easily scandalised. For example, there was the question of whether or not Christians could eat the meat of animals that had been sacrificed to idols. Paul knows that there is only one God and that idols do not exist. Therefore, there is no such thing as meat sacrificed to idols. But the 'weak', who were used to a certain way of reasoning and who had not had much instruction, could think the very opposite and be confused. Paul places himself in the fragile reasoning of these Christians and, so as to avoid troubling their consciences, he considers it best not to eat that meat.

What makes Paul act like this? Although he has the freedom of the Christianity that he announces, he feels the need, indeed the imperative, to make himself the slave of someone, of his brothers and sisters, and of every neighbour, because his model is the crucified Christ.

By becoming man, God drew close to every human being. But on the cross he became one with each one of us sinners, with our weakness, our suffering, our anguish and our ignorance, with our forsakenness, our questions and our burdens...

Paul wants to live in the same way and for this reason he affirms:

For the weak I made myself weak. I made myself all things to all people in order to save some at any cost.

How, then, can we too live this new Word of Life? We know that the purpose of our life and of each day is to reach God. We should not do this alone but with our brothers and sisters. As Christians we have received a call from God similar to Paul's. Like him, we must 'win' someone, we must 'save some at any cost'.

And what is the way? By 'making ourselves one' with our neighbours, whether they are young or old, uneducated or learned, rich or poor, men or women, people from our own country or foreigners. There are the people we meet on the street, the ones we talk to on the phone, those we work for.

We must love everyone. But prefer the weakest ones. To 'make ourselves weak with the weak, to win the weak' going towards those whose faith is frail, who are indifferent, those who say they are atheists, those who pour scorn on religion.

If we make ourselves one with them, we will experience Paul's infallible apostolic method: we will give a witness to God that will fascinate them.

So, I am bold enough to say to you who are reading this: do you have a wife (or husband) who does not love the Church at all, and who enjoys sitting in front of the television for hours and hours? Keep her company, as best you can, as much as you can; taking an interest in all that interests her.

Do you have a son who idolises football and has lost interest in anything else to the point of not knowing how to pray? Become a greater fan than he is. Do you have a girlfriend who loves to travel and to read and learn, but who has cast aside all religious principles? Try to understand her tastes and needs.

Make yourself one, one with everyone, in everything, as much as you can, except in sin. You will see that making yourself one with your neighbours is not time lost but time gained.

One day, in the not too distant future, they will want to know what interests you. And then, gratefully, they will discover, adore and love that God who has prompted your Christian behaviour.