If the greatest commandment of the Christian God is to love then the actualization of love is through empathy. Empathy and compassion… recognizing and understanding the humanity in each person we interact with over the course of our lifetimes and acknowledging the pain and suffering of others beyond those with whom we have a relationship.
We’ve all heard the story of the little girl standing in the middle of a school of beached starfish, stranded on the sand. As she’s throwing them one at a time back into the water an older man approaches her and says: “Young lady there are hundreds of fish stranded here; you can’t possibly make a difference.”
Picking up a starfish, she throws it back into the water and turning toward the stranger says: “I guess I made a difference for that one.”
We should all strive to make a difference where we can, to look on others who are struggling or suffering and try to help as best we’re able. Empathy is recognizing that another’s problem is our problem too. Compassion is being concerned with what you can do to help another deal with their problems.