Got Empathy?

Surprisingly, empathy appears to be having a moment right now—and not in a good way.

Admittedly, we’re a little confused as to why empathy has become so controversial. In the Hebrew Scriptures, we’re reminded again and again how God is a merciful and gracious God. When we look at Jesus’ ministry, we see how empathy was woven into everything he did—meeting people where they were, listening to their pain, and responding with compassion and empathy.

We here at Illustrated Ministry want to be clear that we are “pro-empathy.”

And to help share that message, we created something fun—a little conversation starter, if you will. With a nod to the iconic “Got Milk?” campaign, we created a “Got Empathy?” Sticker!

Placing this sticker on your water bottle, notebook, or laptop is an easy and bold way to push back against a culture that increasingly devalues care for others. You can pre-order stickers here.

Submit

So…how did we get here? When did empathy become something to debate?

This idea has been floating around in academic, religious, and political circles for a few decades. Like in 2019, when Joe Rigney contributed two letters to Desiring God (a conservative Christian ministry website) concerning “the demonic distortion of the virtue of compassion.”

Or a few years later, when writer, theologian, and teacher Donnell A. McLachlan responded to these letters in the following TikTok video, saying,

When one can look at women, black folks, trans folks, children, and see their pain, and suppress empathy and action to appease the god of white evangelical theology, they have chosen the side of the oppressor over the oppressed.

More recently, empathy seems to be bubbling up in our conversations in larger and louder ways.

---

Empathy in the News

On January 21, Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde ended her homily by asking President Trump: “In the name of our God…I ask you to have mercy.”  

On January 22, Ben Garrett posted a photo of Bishop Budde on X, along with the following statement: “Do not commit the sin of empathy. This snake is God’s enemy and yours too. She hates God and His people. You need to properly hate in response. She is not merely deceived but is a deceiver. Your eye shall not pity.”  

On February 18, The Sin of Empathy was published by fundamentalist author Joe Rigney. A few months earlier, on October 15, 2024, conservative Christian author Allie Beth Stuckey published Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion.  

On the February 28 edition of The Joe Rogan Experience, guest Elon Musk was quoted as saying, “The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy.”

From social media posts by conservative Christian influencers to talking points in political circles to real-world policies, there has been a recent and aggressive push to frame empathy and compassion as “weak” or “dangerous.”

---

Empathy is Not a Sin

We’ve also seen many pushing back, speaking out against those trying to demonize empathy.

PC(USA) pastor and blogger Leon Bloder, in a blog on January 28 called “Is Empathy a Sin Now?” wrote the following:

In this time of polarization, let us embrace our capacity for empathy as a beacon guiding us toward connection and healing. The journey may be arduous, but it is one well worth undertaking.

On January 30, Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis reflected upon an interfaith gathering, saying:

Our love and mercy are stronger than the hate that ignores the call to love neighbor and stranger…What we can do now is find our people; wrap our arms around the most vulnerable of us; have honest conversations; lean into mutual aid and kindness; and curate moments of joy and fierce love.

On March 5, Whitney Alese said on Instagram,

What do we do when we see empathy attacked? We dial it up. Increase our connectivity. We increase our coalition building. We make sure everybody is fed. That everybody has their needs met. That we let our roots sink deeper together while spreading out wider to connect with others.

Theologian Diana Butler Bass, in a March 6 note on her site, The Cottage, wrote:

EMPATHY IS NOT A SIN. And it is the strength of humane and civilized people and societies. It is the source of all that is good in our common life. To say differently is evil. And it is a lie from the pit of hell.

Maki Ashe Van Steenwyk, from the Center for Prophetic Imagination, wrote the following in her March 7 article “The Curious Case of Empathy”:

Elon Musk calls empathy a bug in our moral code. In reality, it is one of our greatest evolutionary advantages—a force that binds communities, ignites movements, and topples empires. If empathy is under attack today, it is not because it is weak but because it is dangerous to those who rely on division and hierarchy to maintain power.

---

Empathy throughout the Bible: Empathy is Not a Sin

Those who believe empathy is a sin—or, at the very least, a weakness—are the same people holding or seeking to gain powerful positions in systems that perpetuate inequities and injustices in our country. Having empathy means we move beyond ourselves—empathy connects us deeply with others’ experiences. When we have empathy, we can see that our immigration system is broken. When we have empathy, we can listen to and begin to understand the journeys our LGBTQIA+ siblings have gone through in this country.

Having empathy opens our eyes to the suffering of those around us, and empathy helps us see and respond to injustice, inequality, and oppression.

And those who hold the power, who are leaders in these systems of oppression, are the same who would try and convince you that empathy is weak, toxic, and a sin.

But for those with eyes to see and ears to hear, it’s impossible to read the gospels and see Jesus as someone who would condemn empathy. His entire ministry was built around the ideas of radical empathy and compassion. We read over and over again about how Jesus has compassion for the crowds of his followers. 

• Instead of condemning the woman caught in adultery, he showed her compassion and chose empathy over judgment (John 8:1–11).
• Jesus consistently chose to show compassion and empathy to lepers and others who were deemed “unclean” and were shunned by society (Mark 1:40–42).
• When Jesus saw the large crowds of his followers, he looked upon them and had compassion. Jesus’ empathy was not only an expression but an action, leading him to feed them as well (Matthew 14:13–21).
• Jesus wept with his friends upon hearing of the death of his friend, Lazarus (John 11:33–35).

Empathy in the New Testament

And the idea of divine compassion is not unique to the New Testament. 

• God heard the cries of the Israelites in captivity, was moved with compassion and empathy, and called Moses to lead them toward freedom (Exodus 3:7–10).
• The prophet Micah said that God calls us “to do justice and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God…” (Micah 6:8).
• While Jonah could not view the people of Nineveh with empathy and compassion, God had compassion on the people (and the animals!) of Nineveh (Jonah 4:9–11).
• All throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, God instructs God’s followers to care for the widows, orphans, immigrants, and the poor. God had to constantly remind God’s people of their own rescue from Egypt as a way to increase their own empathy for others in and outside of their community (Deuteronomy 24:17–22; Exodus 22:21–24).

As the anti-empathy narrative gains traction in our country, we must remember empathy is not a weakness—it’s a necessity. Empathy is not a sin—it’s biblical.

However, if those who argue empathy is a sin point fingers at you for having empathy, then let’s sin boldly, friends!

Subscribe to our Blog

Enter your email below and receive our blog posts in your inbox.

Subscribe

We won't send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.