In recent years, a curious argument has emerged in certain Christian circles: that empathy itself may be a kind of sin. Voices like Allie Beth Stuckey, Joe Rigney, Pete Hegseth, and J. D. Vance warn that empathy can cloud our judgment, compromise our convictions, and even lead us into affirming sin. They argue that empathy must be subordinated to truth and law, lest it pull us away from obedience to God.
But is empathy really the problem? Or have we misunderstood how sin, law, and grace actually work in the Christian life?
Sin, Law, and Grace
The critics of empathy define sin primarily as a failure to obey God’s law. By that reasoning, even sympathizing with someone’s struggle could become sinful if it risks validating their choices. The law becomes the unbending measure of truth, and grace is allowed only insofar as it calls people back to that law.
Yet when we turn to Scripture, we see something richer. The law itself is summed up in love: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev. 19:18, Gal. 5:14). Sin, in biblical terms, is not just rule-breaking—it is hardness of heart, a failure to love God and neighbor. And grace is God’s unmerited love, which meets us in our weakness and transforms us.
Empathy—truly entering another’s joys and sorrows—is not opposed to law or truth. It is one of the ways grace takes on flesh in human life.
Jesus and Empathy
Jesus did not fear empathy. He wept at the tomb of Lazarus (John 11:35). He felt compassion on the crowds who were hungry and lost (Mark 6:34). He told the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25–37), showing that true obedience to God’s commands is found not in avoiding the broken, but in drawing near with compassion. On the cross, He entered fully into human suffering—the ultimate act of empathy.
When Jesus said to the woman caught in adultery, “Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more” (John 8:11), He offered both empathy and truth. Grace came first; the call to transformation followed.
Paul and the Early Church
Paul commands Christians: “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15). “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal. 6:2). The law of Christ is not detached from empathy—it is fulfilled through it. Truth matters, yes, but Paul insists it must always be spoken “in love” (Eph. 4:15).
The Prophets and Compassion
The prophets consistently warn against legalism without compassion. Amos thundered: “I hate, I despise your feasts … let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:21, 24). Micah sums it up: “Do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God” (Mic. 6:8). Empathy is written into the DNA of biblical justice.
Where the Critics Go Wrong
The modern fear of empathy rests on a half-truth: yes, compassion can be manipulated if it is divorced from discernment. But to brand empathy itself as sinful is to cut the heart out of the gospel. It risks making us like the Pharisees—so protective of the law that we miss the law’s fulfillment in love.
Jesus shows us that empathy is not indulgence; it is incarnation. It is how grace meets sin, how law is fulfilled in love, how truth is spoken in tears as well as words.
Conclusion: The Power of Christlike Empathy
Empathy is not a sin. It is the way of Christ. It is how we live out the command to love our neighbors, how we embody grace, and how we witness to the world that God’s truth is never cold and distant but always warm with compassion.
As Paul reminds us: “The entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Gal. 5:14). To love as Jesus loved is to enter into the lives of others with empathy, grace, and truth held together.
Pilgrim Reflection: On this winding path of faith, may we resist the temptation to trade compassion for control. Empathy is not our enemy—it is the very heart of Christ beating within us.
The Curious Pilgrims 