Every Person Has Value!

I'll have to disagree again, SM. One may think someone is a complete idiot and feel pity for them, but I beleive that it is very difficult to think someone a complete idiot and to feel EMPATHY for them - not unless you consider yourself a complete idiot, too.

And, I would say empathy is more undervalued than it is over valued. The problem is that feeling empathy for a person has gotten mixed up with being a door mat or a sniveling co-dependent.

For example, one can have understanding for the environmental and genetic forces which may have turned a person in the direction of beuing an addict or an alcoholic. One might even feel deep empathy for this person's plight. This does NOT mean that you will then enable their addiction. A person with empathy will judge the sin and not the sinner, while at the same time, not allowing themselves to be sinned against.