Is Empathy a Sin? Can caring too much ever become morally wrong? Dr. Joe Rigney and Dr. Alastair Roberts

Unbelievable?

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Christianity, Religion & Spirituality

4.6 • 2.3K Ratings

🗓️ 11 July 2025

⏱️ 76 minutes

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Summary

Joe Rigney calls empathy a sin. Alastair Roberts says not so fast. Who’s right? Today, we explore a question at the heart of pastoral care, public witness, and Christian leadership: Is empathy a virtue to be cultivated or a vice to be resisted? Professor Joe Rigney and Dr Alastair Roberts joined Andy Kind. Joe is the author of The Sin of Empathy, a provocative work that argues that when empathy becomes "untethered" from truth, it ceases to be a virtue and can even become sinful. Alastair, a fellow theologian, has written a substantial critique, arguing that Joe's language has muddied important distinctions and potentially misrepresents a vital Christian posture. This conversation is not about labels, but substance - and we'll explore everything from scriptural foundations to gender roles, pastoral ethics, and theological nuance. Can caring too much ever become morally wrong? Dr Joe Rigney serves as Fellow of Theology at New Saint Andrews College and is the author of several books, including Things of Earth and Strangely Bright. Joe Rigney, Dr. Joe Rigney, author of The Sin of Empathy. Joe on X: @joe_rigney Dr Alastair Roberts is a Teaching Fellow of The Theopolis Institute and professor for Davenant Hall, and one of the hosts of the Mere Fidelity podcast. He is a co-author of Echoes of Exodus: Tracing Themes of Redemption Through Scripture (2018). Alistair's substack: https://argosy.substack.com/. Alistair on X: @zugzwanged oon Radiopaper: https://radiopaper.com/AlastairRoberts SOCIAL LINKS Facebook: / https://www.facebook.com/PremierUnbelievable/ Instagram: / https://www.instagram.com/premierunbelievable Tik Tok: / https://www.tiktok.com/@premierunbelievable X (Twitter): / https://x.com/unbelievablefe Bluesky: / https://bsky.app/profile/unbelievablefe.bsky.social 👉 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com 🎉📢 • Subscribe to the Unbelievable? podcast: https://www.premier.plus/unbelievable • More shows, free eBook & newsletter: https://premierunbelievable.com • For live events: http://www.unbelievable.live • For online learning: https://www.premierunbelievable.com/training • Support us: https://www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate

Transcript

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0:41.8	Now, I don't know whether you've ever been watching a TV series like Game of Thrones or Breaking
0:47.7	Bad and found yourself empathizing with someone who is essentially a villain because of the way that you've connected
0:55.7	with them emotionally. That's sort of what we're looking at today. We're looking at the
1:00.5	theme of empathy. And we're asking the question today, un-unbelivable, is empathy a virtue
1:06.8	to be cultivated or a vice to be resisted. And joining me are two people much more capable
1:13.8	of answering that question. My guests today are Professor Joe Rigney and Dr. Alistair Roberts.
1:20.5	Joe is the author of The Sin of Empathy, a provocative work that argues when empathy becomes
1:26.5	untethered from truth, it ceases to be
1:29.1	a virtue and can even become sinful. Alistair, a fellow theologian, has written a substantial
1:35.3	critique of Joe's work, arguing that his language has muddied important distinctions and potentially
	...

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