“ One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.” – Romans 14:2-3

Cambridge dictionary defines condescension as the act of treating someone with disrespect, or acting as if you are more important or more intelligent than them. In Romans 14, Apostle Paul warns against the act of looking down on people with different cultural orientation. The cosmopolitanism of Rome at the time meant that the Roman church was filled with people from diverse backgrounds. Jews, Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Ethiopians, people from the Middle East and Ephesus. While this was to be embraced, several issues of discrimination and condescension were beginning to creep in, as seen in our verse for today.

Paul starts the chapter by warning that individuals with different opinions shouldn’t be judged, or looked down on because of what they eat or which days they observed as holy. Rather, he charged them to embrace the differences in perspectives. By extension, we too are being charged. Too often, we criticize other Christians for not acting in accordance with our own preconceived standards. This is not to say that we must allow earthly standards to infiltrate the church, no. It is a call for us to be patient with others, and while correcting them is fundamental, we must not judge them or do it in a way that will demean their cultural orientation.

To this end, we are charged to treat our neighbors, friends, work colleagues and all in the church with zero discrimination and prejudice. We must continue in love and prayer, believing the master to continue shaping our ideas and way of life into his likeness. Today, we pray against prejudice, judgment and discrimination in the church. May the Lord help us to be good stewards in this regard, Amen.