Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Politics and Religion
Loneliness + Resentment

Loneliness + Resentment

Last updated on: August 9, 2019 at 6:47 am by Gene Veith

0 Comments

Loneliness + Resentment 2019-08-09T06:47:47-04:00 Gene Veith

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The perpetrators of the last three mass shootings had different ideologies, it turns out–a white supremacist in El Paso, a leftist in Dayton, a social Darwinist in Gilroy. But what they have in common is that they were all white men under 25 described as “loners.”

How does the Church do in reaching and ministering to individuals like this? Youth Groups tend to be oriented to fun-and-fellowship for joiners, rather than introverts and troubled brooders. Can churches do anything for them, not just potential domestic terrorists, but the much-more common angst-ridden youth at risk for suicide and misery. In light of these concerns, Christianity Today hosted a podcast entitled What Mass Shootings Mean for Loners and Youth Ministry.

In the conversation between Morgan Lee and Lutheran Seminary professor Andrew Root, an expert in youth ministry, a useful term emerges, one that accounts for much of today’s polarization on every side. In the course of a perceptive discussion that I urge you to listen to or to read the partial transcript of the podcast, Prof. Root says this:

What I think is a toxic recipe that we’re dealing with is loneliness coupled with what Nietzsche actually called ressentiment, this French word for resentment, which is deeper, which is these deeper grievances. And so when you’re all alone, and no community of face-to-face interaction, but you can go online and just be taken into kind of a pseudo-community reverberating grievances, I just think it’s corrosive to the human soul. And so I think there really is something endemic about what it means to be a modern person that we live with this at least baseline sense of grievances or that resentment for other people or resentment for the way the world is.

This inspired me to delve into the concept of ressentiment. From the Wikipedia article on the subject:

Ressentiment is a sense of hostility directed toward object which one identifies as the cause of one’s frustration, that is, an assignment of blame for one’s frustration. The sense of weakness or inferiority complex and perhaps even jealousy in the face of the “cause” generates a rejecting/justifying value system, or morality, which attacks or denies the perceived source of one’s frustration. This value system is then used as a means of justifying one’s own weaknesses by identifying the source of envy as objectively inferior, serving as a defense mechanism that prevents the resentful individual from addressing and overcoming their insecurities and flaws. The ego creates an enemy in order to insulate itself from culpability. . . .

Ressentiment is a reassignment of the pain that accompanies a sense of one’s own inferiority/failure onto an external scapegoat. The ego creates the illusion of an enemy, a cause that can be “blamed” for one’s own inferiority/failure.

The article discusses what various thinkers have done with this concept–from Nietzsche’s silly argument that Christian morality comes from slaves finding a way to make their masters feel guilty to Christian appropriations in Kierkegaard and Rene Girard.

But the psychology of ressentiment rings true, and it helps account for much of what we are seeing today–not just mass shooters but also Islamic terrorists, incel (“involuntary celibates) hatred of women, anti-semites, racists, etc., etc.

It works like this:

I am unpopular; therefore, popular people are EVIL.
I don’t have much money; therefore, rich people are EVIL.
I didn’t live according to my faith; therefore, Christianity isn’t TRUE and the church is EVIL.
My side lost the election; therefore, the other side STOLE IT.
I broke up my marriage and abandoned my children; therefore, family values are OPPRESSIVE.
I can’t get a good job; therefore, it’s the fault of immigrants/blacks/Jews/fill in the blank.

So what is the role of ressentiment in today’s politics of both the left and the right?

To be sure, some groups have genuine enemies–not just the “illusion of enemies”–and some “scapegoats” do have responsibility for a person’s troubles. That is to say, some “resentment” can be justified. But ressentiment is self-justification by demonizing others, which can certainly be toxic, whether mixed with loneliness or politics.

Can you think of any antidotes? In the church? The nation?

Illustration: Graffiti in Shoreditch, London, photo by MsSaraKelly [CC BY 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)] via Wikimedia Commons

psychological projection

resentment

ressentiment

Previous Post

August 8, 2019

Part Human, Part Rat

Next Post

August 12, 2019 Jeffrey Epstein Found Dead in His Cell

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"While she worked for Trump she was a tool's tool!"

reg

Luther on Tools

"I know wired earbuds are making a comeback (I never stopped using them as I ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

"VCRs, tape decks, and cassette players are all having a revival among a segment of ..."

Tom Hering

Luther on Tools

"As a (retired) lawyer I see potential liability from sharing things like power or sharp ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category America Apologetics Art baseball Bible Blog Christ Church crime Culture Economics Education Ethics Family Food Football Government History Holidays Holy Week Humor International Islam Language Law Life Issues Literature Media Medicine Movies Music Nature News Personal Philosophy Politics psychology Reformation Religions Sacraments Science sex Social Science Sports technology television terrorism Theology Uncategorized Vocation war

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What biblical advice is given to those who are anxious?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Cast your cares on the Lord Worry constantly Never tell anyone Trust only yourself

Books by This Author Books by Gene Veith

See All Titles »