So, Empathy is the "Doctrine of Demons"? Really??

            Now that half of 2026 behind us, I’ve taken some time to reflect upon—perhaps to the point of obsession--observations which have me most perplexed, one of them being the twisting of meaning or casting of dispersions upon the words “empathy” and “compassion”, by right-wing spirituality-based organizations. I will mostly address the word “empathy,” and wish to emphasize how important it is for us to cultivate a literate society.

            As I begin this discussion, it may be wise for me to share a bit about the foundation of my spiritual logic. When I deconstructed my faith, I did not demolish and desecrate the entire landscape of my prior beliefs preserved the following concepts:

1)    Love (revere, honor, respect) God/Divinity/Creator.

2)    Love your neighbor as yourself.

3)    Steward your business. (this not only includes your means of livelihood, but also your relationships, your body, your sexuality, your money, your possessions, things rented or borrowed, etc.)

4)    Remember, it’s your witness (your lived evidence that you embrace items 1 and 2 above) that matters.

Three of the primary scriptures which help keep me grounded in efforts to observe point #1 are, “Don't let evil defeat you, but defeat evil with good” (Romans 12:21), ^“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them,”(James 4:17), and, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23). But for the second point, how does one know how to love one’s neighbor as oneself? I believe the primary tools to gaining understanding here are compassion and empathy.

I am going to focus on empathy because I have recently heard from MAGA Christian pulpits that empathy is the thing that 1Timothy 4:1 is referring to when the “doctrine of demons” is mentioned. (The passage reads, “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons.”) If one is to read the rest of the chapter, one can see that empathy is not mentioned at all, but rather the opposite is cited, particularly in the next verse which states, “…Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.” How can one engage empathetically if they have a seared conscience?

“Empathy” is not a doctrine. It is a word that means “the action of understanding, being aware of, being sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings, thoughts, and experience of another.”

I share this because many years ago when I was attending a very conservative church, I had a nightmare in which I’d felt the pastor cited a scripture out of context to support a point which I’d felt to be questionable. Maybe you know that sensation of dissonance hitting you in the middle of your chest and assaulting your brain at the same time? My dream-self, sitting there in the front row, opened my Bible to find the cited scripture in its context to make sure I was not mistaken. The pastor then grabbed my Bible, threw it on the floor, and did that thing that schoolmasters do when your undivided is demanded, pointing two fingers inches away from my eyes, then back at theirs. Sometimes, the message from the pulpit is not about the divine, but it’s about someone’s ego and control issues. Sometimes spoken scriptures out of context are reduced to twisted hot air, manipulated to make a case for some politically expedient point or goal, like a birthday party clown blowing up a skinny balloon and then, in a flourish of squeaky dissonance, twists it into the shape of an animal or impotent sword, the latter clowning being far less harmful.

We need to love ourselves by holding ourselves accountable, stewarding our God-given minds and hearts, as well as faithfully employing our capacity for discernment. We need to love one another by being compassionate and empathetic, as well as by holding each other accountable. We need to pay attention to when we experience dissonance, guarding against anyone using their platform and influence for twisted clowning. I am holding myself accountable by sharing this with you all. Blessings!