Before we stand on empathy, let's decide what we mean by it
Feb 23, 2026 • John Fea
(RNS) — Americans seem to disagree about almost everything these days. Five minutes on social media, cable news or at a tense holiday dinner make that obvious. Still, now and then, a small patch of common ground shows up.
Consider empathy. A recent Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) survey found that 8 in 10 Americans see empathy as essential to a healthy society. Only 16% called it a “dangerous emotion” that undermines “a society guided by God’s truth.”
In a nation that can barely agree on the weather, that’s striking. But just because we agree on a word doesn’t mean we agree on what it means.