Exercising Empathy

As I was reading the news this morning, I found a lump forming in my throat and tears filling my eyes. I was reading about the funeral of El Paso shooting victim Margie Reckard. Her partner of 22 years, Antonio Basco, has no family and feared he’d be the only one at her funeral. He put out a simple invitation to the public to join him for the funeral. Hundreds of strangers from across the country came to El Paso to mourn with him. 

The article from HuffPost described the scene, “As the line swelled, Basco came back out to thank attendees personally for coming. People crowded around to hug and touch him. Basco appeared overwhelmed that strangers were now running toward him to show love and offer condolences.”

I am moved by the unbridled empathy of strangers who not only were touched by Basco’s story, but connected so deeply with his grief that they were moved to go to El Paso and companion him during this heartbreaking time. 

This kind of empathy has become exceedingly rare these days. We may still feel deep empathy when our child cries because they’re not chosen for a sports team or when our spouse is once again overlooked for a promotion. But our empathy beyond our family and friends has grown thin and the cost is healthy community. When was the last time a stranger’s pain moved you to action?

As I continue to read the news, it seems that empathy has become an outdated commodity in church and society. We create teams of “Us” and “Them” and keep adding players to each side. Each time we do that, each time we fail to recognize our shared humanity and kinship, walls are built that create boundaries of who’s in and out. And for every border built, we divide God’s family and our hearts harden to those who aren’t like us. 

It’s time to exercise our empathy, flex tendons of tenderness and strengthen our ability to enter into the pains, fears, and despair of those around us, particularly those we otherwise overlook. 

Jesus kept his sights on those pushed to society’s edges. He allowed what he saw to move him deeply and disturb him enough to do something. He healed and fed those in need. He sought justice for the oppressed and challenged those who abused power. 

And he calls you and I to do the same. 

“Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ’s law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived.” (Galatians 6:2-3)