Empathy vs Sympathy The word empathy does not appear in the Bible, but the Scriptures do refer indirectly to the characteristic or quality of demonstrating empathy, which is defined as “the capability to share anothers emotions and feelings.” The apostle Peter counseled Christians to have “compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous . . .” Peter 3:8 The apostle Paul recommended similar sentiments when he exhorted fellow Christians to “rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep” Both empathy and sympathy are feelings concerning other people. Sympathy is literally feeling with - compassion with another person. Empathy, by contrast, is literally feeling into - the ability to project ones personality into another person and more fully understand that person. Sympathy derives from Latin and Greek words meaning having a fellow feeling. The term empathy originated in psychology (translation of a German term, c. 1903) and has now come to mean the ability to imagine or project oneself into another persons position and experience all the sensations involved in that position. You feel empathy when youve been there, and sympathy when you havent.- anonimus If we must fell both, lets demonstrate empathy! Pastor Victor Sent from my iPhone
Posted on: Sat, 23 Aug 2014 13:05:43 +0000