As "friends of God", martyrs could intercede with Him on behalf of their devotees, in rather the same way as a patron in late Roman society mediated between the mighty and the powerless; the sick could thus find healing and the destitute comfort.
"It is difficult to regard some bawdy drunk and see them as sick and powerless" – Russell Brand on addiction and his Comic Relief campaign, Give It Up It's the brouhaha slot, so why look further than Frankie Boyle?
As a nation we still have not figured out how to house the homeless, employ the growing unemployed and under-employed, provide access for health care for all, and prevent our most powerless populations from becoming sick and dying prematurely.
During the next two weeks of her confinement, Yazmin felt powerless as her daughter got sicker, rebounded, and got sick again, battling a virus that started with a common cold.
Also, most parents feel powerless when their child is sick, and doctors don't want to make them feel even more so by telling them to do nothing.
This meant I was powerless when a young actor got sick from malaria.
In the New Testament, Jesus commands people to care for "the least of these" -- the poor, the sick, the elderly, the powerless.
6. Offer to be their spokesperson, and offer other practical, concrete ways to help: It's terrible to feel powerless while someone you love is sick.
We're focusing on the jobless, the homeless, the sick and the elderly - people who are powerless to change things for themselves.
