In our unending culture wars, the rampaging armies of the "left" and the "right" make a regular practice of tearing down the valued treasures of the other side and burning them publicly. One of the recent treasures that has been set on fire is Empathy. We can see this in the cottage industry of anti-Empathy books such as: Gad Saad’s "Suicidal Empathy: Dying to Be Kind" (2026), Allie Beth Stuckey's "Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion for Political Gain" (2024), Joe Rigney's "Sin of Empathy" (2019) and "The Sin of Empathy" (2024), and Paul Bloom's "Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion" (2016).
This week, Roman Catholic Bishop Robert Barron added his gasoline to the fire in this sermon on Empathy, Aquinas, and Love. Bishop Barron has been someone I deeply respected in the past, and I own several of his books, and have used his videos in several classes. However, I find fatal flaws in the argument and rhetoric of Barron here, and fear he has been co-opted by reactionary elements of the right.
In the video, Barron engages with Aquinas' definition of Love (to will the good of the other) which he is spot on about. However, he also fabricates his own strawman caricature of "empathy™", which has very little to do with actual Empathy as advocated by professionals such as pastors, psychologists, and social theorists. Perhaps Barron has received his definition of empathy™ from the reactionary authors he lists who made it up to advance their politics, or perhaps he got it from the worst of Tik Tok and "therapy influencers". Either way he should know better, and deal with the strongest version of a concept, not strawman the weakest version.
He makes it sound like he has not read any professionally produced literature on Empathy. No professional would say that Empathy is a mandate to "feel the feelings of somebody else" and never "hurt the feelings of other people". Instead, Barron's tropes are pulling on well known psychological pathologies known to helping professionals such as:
Enmeshment and loss of differentiation: An inability to maintain self-other boundaries, causing one to become overwhelmed or controlled by another's emotional state.
Enabling and codependency: Shielding another person from the natural consequences of their behavior or from difficult realities in order to avoid immediate distress.
Permissive indulgence / Conflict avoidance: Sacrificing long-term flourishing to evade uncomfortable confrontation.
What Barron misses is that Empathy is a facet of, and grounding skill for, Love. Real Empathy, in contrast to Barron's empathy™, has to do with the moral imagination needed to "Love your neighbor AS yourself". To do this, one has to have the moral imagination to see God's Life in the other, and put ourselves in the shoes of the other, in order to determine what needs I might have if I were in their place. Only by doing this can we imagine how the other might lack what is necessary for their own good, so that we can work with them and for them to supply what is lacking. In other words, without actual Empathy, we cannot will the Good of the other because we cannot imagine what will make for the Good of the other.
Barron's paucity of moral imagination extends to his treatment of critical theory, and his lack of understanding that critical theory actually has an objective moral value it supports: The liberation of the weak and vulnerable from powerful oppressors. Now, I agree with Barron that there are MANY dead-ends in post-Marxist critical theories (such as the Frankfort School, Derrida, Foucault, and Identity politics). But the dead ends have almost nothing to do with Empathy.
Yet, Barron's lack of moral imagination blinds him to the fact that critical theory arose for a reason rooted in actual injustices done to the vulnerable. Traditional modes of politics hide behind ideologies-- theology, philosophy, scientism, economics, political science-- in order to justify how the powerful use and dispose of the vulnerable. With the moral imagination of Empathy, we can even see that this outrage at the powerful, and desire for the liberation of the vulnerable, was central to Jesus himself.
I know I should not judge a thinker's entire worldview based on a homily or a TED talk. But this video (and several others) that Barron has put out in the last few years does make me worry deeply for his ministry and legacy. However, I think it is easy to critique ideas we disagree with. It is much harder to construct an alternate explanation that makes better sense of the situation we find ourselves in. So, now that I have critiqued Barron's empathy™, I should construct an alternate account of actual Empathy. To that I now turn:
Introduction to Empathy
Empathy is the starting point for all authentic community, and the foundational virtue for a life of Love. It is the imaginative and compassionate act of stepping into another person’s shoes, of seeing the world through their eyes, and feeling something of what they feel. To practice empathy is to recognize the profound truth that we are all interconnected, that the joys and sorrows of our neighbor are, in a very real sense, our own. It is the active expression of the Great Commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves. This is not a sentimental feeling, but a deep, spiritual commitment to see the face of Christ in every person we meet, especially in those whose lives and experiences are vastly different from our own.
At its core, empathy is about welcome. It is the intentional creation of a safe and hospitable space where every single person is received not as a stranger or a project, but as a beloved child of God. This welcome dismantles the walls we build between "us" and "them" and creates a community of genuine belonging. When we treat others as we want to be treated— the simple yet radical ethic Jesus gives us in the Golden Rule— we are practicing empathy. We are affirming their inherent worth and dignity, acknowledging that their needs, hopes, and fears are as valid and important as our own. This leads us beyond simple kindness and toward the more demanding work of justice and equity, ensuring that not only are we personally welcoming, but that the systems and structures of our community are fair for all. Empathy is the moral and spiritual engine that drives us to build a better world.
The virtue of Empathy is expressed through several key values:
Hospitality: The practice of “radical hospitality” creates welcoming and inclusive spaces for all people, especially strangers and those on the margins.
Fairness: The commitment to treating people in a way that is right and reasonable, without favoritism or discrimination.
Equity: The practice of giving everyone what they need to be successful, recognizing that different people may need different levels of support to achieve fairness.
Reciprocity: The understanding that relationships are mutual, involving a healthy give-and-take that honors the contributions of all.
Justice: The work of identifying and dismantling systems that create inequality and oppression, in order to build a society where all can flourish.
Dignity: The recognition of the sacred and inherent worth of every person as an image-bearer of God.
Respect: The practice of showing high regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, and traditions of others.
Empathy in Scripture
The call to empathy echoes throughout the pages of Scripture, forming the very heart of Jesus’ ethical teaching. The five theme verses for this virtue provide a powerful framework for understanding its biblical roots. Jesus’ warning in Matthew 7:2, "With the measure you use, you will be measured," is a direct call to empathic judgment. It forces us to ask if we would want to be judged with the same harshness or lack of understanding that we often apply to others. This leads directly to the positive command, the Golden Rule in Matthew 7:12: "In everything do to others as you would have them do to you." This is perhaps the most concise and profound definition of empathy in the entire Bible, making our own experience the standard for how we treat others.
Jesus deepens this command in John 15:12, shifting the standard from ourselves to his own example: "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you." Our empathy is now modeled on the radical, self-giving Love of Christ himself. The Apostle Paul provides the theological grounding for this empathy in 1 Corinthians 12:26-27, explaining that as members of the one Body of Christ, we are intrinsically connected. "If one member suffers, all suffer with it; if one member is honored, all share its joy." Our individual experiences are shared; empathy is not an option but a spiritual reality. Finally, in 2 Corinthians 1:4, Paul shows that our own experiences of suffering and comfort are not just for us; they are given so that we can better empathize with and care for others. God "comforts us in all our trouble so that we can comfort other people who are in trouble."
Beyond these key verses, many stories in Scripture provide rich case studies in the practice of empathy:
The Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37): In this parable, Jesus redefines the meaning of "neighbor" as anyone in need, and shows that true empathy crosses all social, religious, and ethnic boundaries to offer compassion and practical help.
Jesus and the Woman at the Well (John 4:1-42): Jesus breaks multiple social taboos to engage with a Samaritan woman. He sees her not as an outcast, but as a person with deep spiritual thirst, demonstrating an empathy that leads to her transformation and the transformation of her entire village.
The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25:31-46): Jesus makes empathy the ultimate standard of judgment. He declares that when we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and visit the imprisoned, we are ministering directly to Christ himself, who identifies completely with the "least of these."
Zacchaeus the Tax Collector (Luke 19:1-10): Instead of condemning the corrupt and despised tax collector, Jesus empathizes with his loneliness and desire for connection, inviting himself to Zacchaeus's home. This act of acceptance and solidarity inspires Zacchaeus to repentance and radical generosity.
Ruth and Naomi (Ruth 1): Ruth, a Moabite woman, demonstrates profound empathy and loyalty to her Israelite mother-in-law, Naomi. She refuses to abandon Naomi in her grief and poverty, declaring "Where you go, I will go... your people shall be my people, and your God my God."
Matthew 7:1-5: Jesus teaches, "Do not judge, so that you may not be judged," and warns against focusing on the speck in our neighbor's eye while ignoring the log in our own. This is a direct command to practice humble, empathetic judgment rather than condemnation.
Mark 1:21-2:12: Jesus begins his healing ministry, and we see his actions motivated by his profound empathy and compassion for others.
Luke 6:36-38: Jesus commands his followers to "Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful." He connects this mercy directly to non-judgment and forgiveness, promising that the measure of compassion we give to others is the measure we will receive.
Isaiah 58:6-11: The prophet describes the "fast that I choose" which is not about personal piety but about active compassion. It involves freeing the oppressed, sharing food with the hungry, housing the homeless, and clothing the naked, all acts which flow from a deep empathy for those who suffer.
Philippians 2:1-8: Paul calls the community to be of one mind and to look not to their own interests but to the interests of others. This is the ultimate call to empathy, rooted in the example of Christ Jesus, who "emptied himself" to share in our human life.
Romans 12:9-16: This passage is a beautiful tapestry of ethical commands rooted in empathy. It calls on believers to "weep with those who weep, rejoice with those who rejoice," and to "live in harmony with one another."
Empathy in Theology
The Christian call to empathy is not merely a good idea or a helpful social strategy. It is a direct and logical consequence of our most fundamental beliefs about God. Our theology— our understanding of who God is and how God acts— gives rise to this virtue. Two creedal ideas in particular, the Incarnation, the Trinity, and the Community as the Body of Christ, make the practice of empathy an essential, non-negotiable aspect of the Christian life.
The doctrine of the Incarnation is the ultimate act of divine empathy. In the person of Jesus Christ, the eternal Word of God "became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14). God did not remain distant, aloof, or immune to the human condition. Instead, God chose to enter into it completely, embracing the full spectrum of our existence: Our joy and our pain, our triumphs and our struggles, our birth and our death. Jesus laughed, wept, felt hunger, experienced betrayal, and knew suffering. From the womb to the tomb and beyond, God put Godself in our shoes and faced all that humans face, so that everything in human experience may be united in the life of God. In doing so, God demonstrated the most profound empathy possible, bridging the infinite gap between Creator and creation. Our practice of empathy, then, is a direct imitation of God's own life. When we strive to understand and share in the feelings of another, we are participating in the very pattern of the Incarnation, making God's compassionate presence known in the world. The incarnation grounds inclusion because in Christ, God has included all humanity in Godself forever.
And just as the Incarnation is the theological foundation for inclusion, so also the Trinity is the ground for diversity, since our Ultimate Reality is a Community of Diverse persons united perfectly in Love. Unlike a vision of God as a solitary, monolithic individual, which could imply that sameness is the ideal, the doctrine of the Trinity reveals that relationship, distinction, and particularity are woven into the very fabric of Being. Within the Godhead, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are eternally distinct Persons, yet their unity is not a bland fusion but a dynamic and joyful dance of mutual indwelling, a perichoresis of self-giving agape love. This divine community becomes the ultimate pattern for our own, teaching us that a thriving society is not one that erases differences in a melting pot of uniformity, but one that, like a beautiful mosaic, finds its strength and beauty in the unique contribution of each distinct part. the Love that binds the Trinity is a love that honors the "otherness" of the other, and it calls us to create communities where every person's unique identity— their culture, their story, their gifts— is seen as an essential reflection of the diverse glory of our Creator. Valuing diversity, therefore, is not merely a modern social courtesy; it is a profound theological act of bearing witness to the Triune God.
Flowing directly from the Incarnation and Trinity is the reality of the Community as the Body of Christ. As the Apostle Paul explains, the Church is not just an organization of like-minded people. It is a single, living organism with Christ as its head. This is not a mere metaphor, but a deep spiritual truth. "You are Christ’s body," Paul writes, "and each is a member of it" (1 Corinthians 12:27). This mystical union means that we are inextricably bound to one another. What affects one member affects the whole body. My neighbor's pain is my pain; their joy is my joy. Empathy, from this theological perspective, is simply waking up to reality. It is the recognition that the divisions we perceive between ourselves are illusory. To refuse to empathize with a suffering member of the body is as absurd as a hand refusing to feel the pain of the foot it has stepped on. It is a denial of our very identity in Christ, who holds us all together in a single web of Love and mutual belonging.
Undergirding these ideas is the theology of Divine Immanence. A panentheistic vision affirms that God’s presence interpenetrates all of creation, meaning that the divine spark dwells within every person. Empathy, therefore, is more than a moral action. It is an act of spiritual perception. When we look at another person with empathy, we are training our eyes to see beyond their personality or social location and to recognize the Christ who dwells within them. Every encounter becomes a potential sacrament, a holy moment where we connect with God in and through our connection with one another.
Empathy in Ethics
Empathy is the engine that drives Christian ethics. While theology gives us the why, ethics gives us the how, and empathy is the essential practice that translates our beliefs into loving action. It is the virtue that allows us to live into our most sacred moral commitments: the Love of God, neighbor, and self; the Golden Rule; and the pursuit of justice and equity. Without empathy, these principles remain abstract ideals; with it, they become our lived reality.
The command to love your neighbor as yourself is the cornerstone of Christian ethics, and it is impossible to fulfill without empathy. How can we truly love our neighbors if we do not first make an effort to understand them? Empathy is the bridge that connects our self-love to our love for others. It takes the deep and intuitive understanding we have of our own needs, fears, and desires and extends it outward. When we ask, "What would I want if I were in their situation?" we are using empathy to activate the commandment. This empathic connection fuels our compassion and moves us from passive sentiment to active help, transforming the abstract principle of "love" into concrete acts of kindness, support, and solidarity.
Empathy is also the starting point for the Golden Rule: "In everything do to others as you would have them do to you." This ethical guideline requires a profound act of imagination. Before we act or speak, we must pause and project ourselves into the other person's context. This imaginative leap is the essence of empathy. It prevents us from treating people as objects or as means to our own ends. Instead, it forces us to recognize their full humanity, worthy of the same consideration and respect we demand for ourselves.
Empathy is also the foundation for the demanding work of justice and equity. A purely academic understanding of injustice rarely moves us to action. It is when we empathize with the pain, frustration, and suffering of those who are marginalized or oppressed that we are stirred to do something about it. Empathy allows us to see beyond statistics and to connect with the human stories behind the headlines. It is what moved the prophets of Israel to cry out against the exploitation of the poor and what compelled Jesus to challenge the unjust systems of his day. Empathy makes injustice personal. It closes the gap between "their problem" and "our problem," compelling us to work for a world where every single person is treated with the dignity and fairness that we desire for ourselves.
Finally, the ethical practice of empathy is a powerful act of resistance in a culture that is increasingly defined by division, fear, and tribalism. The algorithms of social media and the rhetoric of political discourse are designed to amplify our differences, to flatten the humanity of our opponents, and to trap us in echo chambers where we are constantly told to be afraid of "the other." Empathy is the sacred and difficult work of breaking out of these prisons. It is the courageous choice to see the world through the eyes of someone with whom we disagree, not to condone their views, but to recognize their humanity, their hopes, and their fears. In a world that profits from our division, empathy is the radical and Christlike act of seeing the divine spark in every person, which is the non-negotiable first step toward healing a fractured world.
Empathy in Spirituality
The spiritual life, as shaped by the Book of Common Prayer (BCP), is a school of empathy, training our hearts to feel with and for the whole human family. Our life is not a solitary ascent to God but a journey taken in community, and the virtue of empathy is woven into the very fabric of our common prayer. The BCP is saturated with language that trains our hearts to feel with and for others, constantly drawing us out of ourselves and into solidarity with the wider world. This empathic spirituality is a core part of our Anglican identity.
One of the most powerful expressions of communal empathy is found in the Prayers of the People (BCP, pp. 383-393). In each of the six forms provided, we are explicitly guided to pray for others. We pray "for the holy Church of God," for "all who serve the common good," for "the aged and infirm, for the widowed and orphans, and for the sick and the suffering," and for "the poor and the oppressed." In Form VI, we pray, "We pray for all who suffer and are afflicted in body or in mind," and are invited to name them, making their struggles present in our hearts and on our lips (BCP, p. 392).
While the Prayers of the People offer a weekly exercise in this, The Great Litany (BCP, p. 148) is the church's most profound and comprehensive school of compassion. In its long and beautiful petitions, the community is called to extend its empathy far beyond its own walls. We are explicitly guided to pray for the suffering of the entire world, asking God to "show thy pity upon all prisoners and captives, the homeless and the hungry, and all who are desolate and oppressed" (BCP, p. 151).
The Litany is a spiritual discipline that systematically breaks down our self-concern and forces us to enter into solidarity with those whose lives are marked by struggle. We are called to feel with "all women in childbirth, young children and orphans, the widowed, and all whose homes are broken or torn by strife" (BCP, p. 152). We pray for God to "visit the lonely; to strengthen all who suffer in mind, body, and spirit" (BCP, p. 152). By praying these words together, we are practicing the virtue of empathy, allowing the Spirit to stretch our hearts to encompass the full range of human experience, reminding us of our shared vulnerability and our duty to "support, help, and comfort all who are in danger, necessity, and tribulation," until our prayer culminates in the ultimate expression of empathy: asking God to "have mercy upon all mankind" (BCP, p. 152).
Finally, the General Confession is another profound act of empathy, as we corporately admit our shared brokenness: "We have left undone those things which we ought to have done; and we have done those things which we ought not to have done" (BCP, p. 360). In confessing together, we recognize that we all fall short and are all in need of God's grace, which breaks down the walls of self-righteousness and fosters compassion for our fellow sinners.
The lives of the saints provide us with powerful models of empathy in action. They are the heroes of our faith who embodied the compassionate life of Christ.
St. Damien of Molokai (1840-1889) was a Roman Catholic priest from Belgium who volunteered to serve a quarantined colony of people with leprosy on the island of Molokai in Hawaii. For sixteen years, he lived among them, not just as a priest, but as a friend and advocate. He dressed their wounds, built their homes, and, most importantly, restored their sense of human dignity. He so identified with their suffering that he eventually contracted and died from the disease himself. His life is a stark and powerful witness to an empathy that is willing to share fully in the suffering of others.
St. Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997), known to the world as Mother Teresa, dedicated her life to the "poorest of the poor" in the slums of Calcutta, India. Her work was a radical act of empathy, rooted in her profound belief that she was serving Jesus himself in the "distressing disguise of the poor." She and the sisters of her order, the Missionaries of Charity, did not simply offer aid from a distance; they went into the gutters to find the dying, touched the bodies of those deemed untouchable, and offered love and dignity to those who had been completely abandoned by society. Her life was a powerful testament to an empathy that refuses to look away from suffering, choosing instead to enter into it with compassionate, hands-on care.
St. Josephine Bakhita (c. 1869-1947) was a Sudanese woman who was kidnapped and sold into brutal slavery as a child. She endured horrific abuse for years before eventually gaining her freedom in Italy and becoming a Canossian sister. What made her a model of empathy was her profound lack of bitterness and her deep compassion for others, born from her own suffering. When asked what she would do if she met her former captors, she said she would kneel and kiss their hands, for if it had not been for them, she would not have come to know Jesus. Her life demonstrates that even the deepest wounds can become sources of radical empathy and forgiveness, allowing one to connect with the pain of others with profound understanding and love.
And with that we turn to the Triune God of Love who calls us to the moral imagination of Empathy, to pray for the power of Christ's Spirit to help us embody the empathetic Love that Jesus embodied:
For the Diversity of Races and Cultures (Book of Common Prayer, page 840)
O God, who created all peoples in your image, we thank you for the wonderful diversity of races and cultures in this world. Enrich our lives by ever-widening circles of fellowship, and show us your presence in those who differ most from us, until our knowledge of your love is made perfect in our love for all your children; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Incarnation and Empathy
Lord Jesus Christ, even though you are one with God, you chose to become one with humanity as well, so that humanity may be united in your Love. You became like us, so that we may become like you. Help us to follow in your Path and choose empathy, choose compassion, and choose to see ourselves in others, so that we all may be healed by your undying Love, and be included in your eternal Life. All this we ask in your Name. Amen.
For the Trinity and Diversity
Holy Trinity, just as you are diversity in unity as the Father, and Son, and Holy Spirit, you have made us in your image as diverse peoples who share a common love. Help us to see our differences not as a reason to compare and exclude one another, but as an opportunity to rejoice in your creativity, and offer to each other your love, respect, and hospitality. This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
For Formation in Empathy
Lord of Love and God of Empathy: Help us welcome every person as a child of God, by seeing ourselves in each other, and treating others as we want to be treated. May we create an environment where we respect the dignity of every person, with fairness and equitable treatment for all. Lead us in the Path of Christ to become people of empathy, hospitality, fairness, justice, and respect. We ask this in the power of your Spirit. Amen.
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