Practiced Empathy

I haven’t watched as many Braves games as I do in a usual summer, but I’ve managed to see a few on TV. What’s remarkable, is that twice this year, I’ve seen a game with a controversial call at home plate. In a game in April, a Braves player was clearly tagged out at home, but called safe. This month, a Braves player was clearly safe when he slid into home, but called out. In both instances, even with clear video evidence on instant replay, the “wrong” calls were upheld. It seems the umpire’s initial judgement on the field (even if it’s not a good one!), carries significant weight in upholding or reversing a decision.

This pattern is indicative of our world. Whether it’s a ballgame, or vaccines, or elections, we’re living in an age where different conclusions are drawn from the same evidence. And people are SO entrenched in their original thinking that they can never be open to a different outcome. In other words, we all bring our biases into the world we interpret. What a hard place to be!

As our children (of all ages!) begin a new school year, they’ll balance bias and knowledge. How they understand their neighbors now will affect their ability to embrace how past generations have shaped them. How they desire to treat their neighbors now will inform the choices they make in learning the skills to serve their neighbors in the future. How much energy they put into obtaining knowledge now will affect how much knowledge they can retain in adulthood and beyond.

As a church, I believe the best way we can help our children is to model practiced empathy. There will always be something to disagree about. That’s just human nature. But there’s never a time when we can’t be open to considering how our neighbors arrive at different conclusions. We might discover that even though our process of thinking is different, we still share commonalities: anxiety about an uncertain future; hope for our children; a desire to do what God is calling us to do; a mutual disdain for instant replay!

The practiced empathy of Jesus revealed that Samaritans are neighbors, too; that God’s love can ooze from friend and foe alike; that both Maries and Marthas are doing needed work; that Torah’s application can take all sorts of forms, as long as it’s rooted in God’s spirit.

In the year ahead, may we help our children to learn those things necessary to building convictions that are tempered with compassion. And may their goodness rub off on us!