Profile of a Sociopath

[Reg]

Here's the thread Abbey.

Profile of a Sociopath

PERSONALITY TRAITS:


1. SUPERFICIAL CHARM -- the tendency to be smooth, engaging, charming, and slick. Not in the least shy, self-conscious, or afraid to say anything. He never gets tongue-tied and has freed himself from the social conventions about taking turns in talking, for example.


2. GRANDIOSE SELF-WORTH -- a grossly inflated view of one's abilities and self-worth, self-assured, opinionated, cocky, a braggart. An arrogant guy who believes he is a superior human being.


3. NEED FOR STIMULATION (PRONENESS TO BOREDOM) -- an excessive need for novel, thrilling, and exciting stimulation; taking chances and doing things that are risky. Often has low self-discipline in carrying tasks through to completion because he gets bored easily.


4. PATHOLOGICAL LYING -- can be moderate or high; in moderate form, and will be shrewd, crafty, cunning, sly, and clever (in extreme form, he will be deceptive, deceitful, underhanded, unscrupulous, manipulative, and dishonest).


5. CONNING AND MANIPULATIVENESS -- the use of deceit and deception to cheat, con, or defraud others for personal gain; distinguished from Item #4 in the degree to which exploitation and callous ruthlessness is present, as reflected in a lack of concern for the feelings and suffering of one's victims.


6. LACK OF REMORSE OR GUILT -- a lack of feelings or concern for the losses, pain, and suffering of victims; a tendency to be unconcerned, dispassionate, coldhearted, and unempathic. This item is usually demonstrated by a disdain for one's victims.


7. SHALLOW AFFECT -- emotional poverty or a limited range or depth of feelings; interpersonal coldness in spite of signs of open gregariousness.


8. CALLOUSNESS and LACK OF EMPATHY -- a lack of feelings toward people in general; cold, contemptuous, inconsiderate, and tactless.


9. PARASITIC LIFESTYLE -- an intentional, manipulative, selfish, and exploitative financial dependence on others as reflected in a lack of motivation, low self-discipline, and inability to begin or complete responsibilities.


10. POOR BEHAVIORAL CONTROLS -- expressions of irritability, annoyance, impatience, threats, aggression, and verbal abuse; inadequate control of anger and temper; acting hastily.


11. PROMISCUOUS SEXUAL BEHAVIOR -- a variety of brief, superficial relations, numerous affairs, and an indiscriminate selection of sexual partners; the maintenance of several relationships at the same time; a history of attempts to sexually coerce others into sexual activity or taking great pride at discussing sexual exploits or conquests.


12. LACK OF REALISTIC, LONG-TERM GOALS -- an inability or persistent failure to develop and execute long-term plans and goals; a nomadic existence, aimless, lacking direction in life.


13. IMPULSIVITY -- the occurrence of behaviors that are unpremeditated and lack reflection or planning; inability to resist temptation, frustrations, and urges; a lack of deliberation without considering the consequences; foolhardy, rash, unpredictable, erratic, and reckless.


14. IRRESPONSIBILITY -- repeated failure to fulfill or honor obligations and commitments; such as not paying bills, defaulting on loans, performing sloppy work, being absent or late to work, failing to honor contractual agreements.


15. FAILURE TO ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR OWN ACTIONS -- a failure to accept responsibility for one's actions reflected in low conscientiousness, an absence of dutifulness, antagonistic manipulation, denial of responsibility, and an effort to manipulate others through this denial.


16. MANY SHORT-TERM RELATIONSHIPS -- a lack of commitment to a long-term relationship reflected in inconsistent, undependable, and unreliable commitments in life, including marital.


17. JUVENILE DELINQUENCY -- behavior problems between the ages of 13-18; mostly behaviors that are crimes or clearly involve aspects of antagonism, exploitation, aggression, manipulation, or a callous, ruthless tough-mindedness.


18. CRIMINAL VERSATILITY -- A diversity of types of criminal offenses (regardless if the person has been arrested or convicted for them); taking great pride at getting away with crimes.
http://www.takebackyourheart.com/

Antisocial personality disorder
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Antisocial personality disorder (abbreviated APD or ASPD) is a psychiatric diagnosis in the DSM-IV-TR recognizable by the disordered individual's disregard for social rules and norms, impulsive behavior, and indifference to the rights and feelings of others. The World Health Organization's ICD-10 diagnostic manual uses dissocial personality disorder instead. The concept psychopathy (not to be confused with psychosis) generally denotes a related but more severe personality disorder.

Sociopathy is sometimes claimed to be a less formal synonym for this disorder based on terminology from an older edition of the DSM. Various experts have co-opted the terms psychopathy and sociopathy inconsistently to mark differences in meaning they believe are theoretically important although there is a consensus that both terms refer to personality disorders with prominent norm-breaking and socially disruptive behavior.

Mnemonic

A mnemonic that can be used to remember the criteria for antisocial personality disorder is CORRUPT:

* C - cannot follow law
* O - obligations ignored
* R - remorselessness
* R - recklessness
* U - underhandedness
* P - planning deficit
* T - temper

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antisocial_personality_disorder

Profile of the Sociopath

This website summarizes some of the common features of descriptions of the behavior of sociopaths.
http://www.hss.caltech.edu/~mcafee/Bin/sb.html

Sociopathy is chiefly characterized by something wrong with the person's conscience. They either don't have one, it's full of holes like Swiss cheese, or they are somehow able to completely neutralize or negate any sense of conscience or future time perspective. Sociopaths only care about fulfilling their own needs and desires - selfishness and egocentricity to the extreme. Everything and everybody else is mentally twisted around in their minds as objects to be used in fulfilling their own needs and desires. They often believe they are doing something good for society, or at least nothing that bad. The term "sociopath" is frequently used by psychologists and sociologists alike in referring to persons whose unsocialized character is due primarily to parental failures (usually fatherlessness) rather than an inherent feature of temperament. Lykken (1995), for example, clearly distinguishes between the sociopath (who is socialized into becoming a psychopath) and a "true" psychopath (who is born that way). However, this may only describe the "common sociopath", as there are at least four (4) different subtypes -- common, alienated, aggressive, and dyssocial. Commons are characterized mostly by their lack of conscience; the alienated by their inability to love or be loved; aggressives by a consistent sadistic streak; and dyssocials by an ability to abide by gang rules, as long as those rules are the wrong rules. As Stout (2005) indicates, it only takes three of the following to be defined as a sociopath, and some common sociopathic traits include:

List of Common Sociopathic Traits
Egocentricity; Callousness; Impulsivity; Conscience defect; Exaggerated sexuality; Excessive boasting; Risk taking; Inability to resist temptation; Antagonistic, deprecating attitude toward the opposite sex; Lack of interest in bonding with a mate.
http://faculty.ncwc.edu/TOCONNOR/428/428lect16.htm

[mary]

Thanks so much for posting this, Reg. It's a keeper, a very handy reference, indeed! :)

Under "Profile of a Sociopath," everything except Nos. 16, 17 and 18 apply to my old "pastor." (I don't know what he did as a juvenile; there was some reason or other, too, that he wasn't ordained until he was almost 33, although he started seminary at a normal age. He didn't graduate with his original classmates.)

Besides what he did to me, and maybe even more so, I'm bothered by his swindling behavior. The Lord, I guess, will deal with him for what he did and probably continues to do to those elderly people's bank accounts... Other people's money is his, or so he thinks. He swindled money from the mother of one of his own elders, for Pete's sake! :mad:

Thanks again, Reg. I always enjoy and value your "reference threads!"

mary

[ex-shep]

Thanks again, Reg. I always enjoy and value your "reference threads!"

mary[/QUOTE]

Here, here!! Bravo for bringing a post back from the archives. It was a good 10th Step inventory. I was inadvertantly stringing a friend along in a debt I owed her. She is on a fixed income. I got on the phone to make payment arrangements. I had to really check my motivations. Thanks, I needed that.

[Elisabeth]

When I was talking about my SA pastor to one of my counselors, she said "That guy's a sociopath!" He fits most of these points, that I know of. I wouldn't know about some of these, for he is a good liar. Guess that's the way most sociopaths get away with it.

[abbey]

I dont know reg, i read this but my abuser only has a few traits.

HE lacked empathy for me ( i missed my son terribly, he didnt care)

He played by his own rules. God was number one, but he was fanatical and basically thought that if i left his group i was leaving god. he wanted to control me.

he had a pretty slick personality. charming.

he never used police! claiming all we need is god. then explaining to me how one day a woman with a shot-gun came after him and as she raised to fire, god made her collapse to the ground. He also claimed that most police are satanists and so are most doctors.

sociopath? i dont know!

just plain crazy? absolutely.

[SpinningHead]

That describes EXACTLY (I'm talking every point!!) the guy who my SA church hired to be the general contractor of the new worship center. I should mention <again> that this guy was the head of trustrees for the church. He was unqualified, unexperienced & yet he submitted a bid (he was allowed to!!) for the job undercutting the *real* GC that the church had been in discussions with (for over a year!!). His bid undercut the first guy's by over half !! He knew what amount to bid because he had privy to what was being submitted as he and the first GC were "friends". He sat in every building committee meeting and sabotaged everything that was progress made by anyone else but himself. And since basically everyone was afraid of this guy, whatever he did was fine. When we brought the issues to the pastor he would listen and then say, "you have to know So-n-So has a good heart"...like that made anything he did ok??!! I have a good heart, does that give me license to scream & yell when I don't get my way? gossip? slander? sabotage??

I'll say again...we left the church Sept. 05 and the building still sits empty to this day, unfinished on a hill...with all this guy's hideous design changes - and no, he's not a designer or architect! It's looks like a mental assylum on a hill. :( It is SO bad and SO not what we designed!!

Sometimes I think I'm past something or over it. Then a posting like this appears and it validates my experience and I feel sadness and betrayal all over again. :( I thought I was done with some of these feelings.

[Reg]

I dont know reg, i read this but my abuser only has a few traits.

HE lacked empathy for me ( i missed my son terribly, he didnt care)

He played by his own rules. God was number one, but he was fanatical and basically thought that if i left his group i was leaving god. he wanted to control me.

he had a pretty slick personality. charming.

he never used police! claiming all we need is god. then explaining to me how one day a woman with a shot-gun came after him and as she raised to fire, god made her collapse to the ground. He also claimed that most police are satanists and so are most doctors.

sociopath? i dont know!

just plain crazy? absolutely.

About that women he said collapsed. Do you really believe him? :rolleyes:

[Elisabeth]

I dont know reg, i read this but my abuser only has a few traits.

HE lacked empathy for me ( i missed my son terribly, he didnt care)

He played by his own rules. God was number one, but he was fanatical and basically thought that if i left his group i was leaving god. he wanted to control me.

he had a pretty slick personality. charming.

he never used police! claiming all we need is god. then explaining to me how one day a woman with a shot-gun came after him and as she raised to fire, god made her collapse to the ground. He also claimed that most police are satanists and so are most doctors.

sociopath? i dont know!

just plain crazy? absolutely.

So many of these traits sociopaths are good at hiding. That's how they get away with it! ;) Even if he wasn't a sociopath, crazy is enough! Police and doctors satanists?! Sounds like a good liar, too. :rolleyes:

[DarkChoirBoy74]

THOSE ARE THE TYPE OF IDIOTS THAT TRY TO MAKE A NAME FOR THEMSELVES AT OUR EXPENSE!

[abbey]

About that women he said collapsed. Do you really believe him? :rolleyes:

i know its enough to roll your eyes!

hmmmm, he didnt seem like a liar. just super-obsessed with God and conspiracy theories. He was nice in a lot of ways and also insane with his theories about this and that! He talked about the illuminati alot. he said that he would rescue people from covens and kick out all their demons. ( i did have powers come out of me in an exercism ) another crazy thing was he would talk to the demons like just carry on casual conversations with demons. LOL....

did the woman collapse before the gun went off? i dunno...but he didnt seem to lie.

[abbey]

So many of these traits sociopaths are good at hiding. That's how they get away with it! ;) Even if he wasn't a sociopath, crazy is enough! Police and doctors satanists?! Sounds like a good liar, too. :rolleyes:

yes, he ignored jesus and grace, but talking about the illuminati ifiltrating hospitals and police forces---i mean, he wanted me to believe all this stuff. I told him he was off-base and a cult leader. When i told him i was leaving he got all mad and ....it was because he was losing control of me.

The sad part is i trusted him to be cool and he wasnt. Jesus will take care of all of us according to our deeds. He'll get his.

[Elisabeth]

When i told him i was leaving he got all mad and ....it was because he was losing control of me.


When I told my SA pastor he was leaving, he got mad, too. I also knew it was because he was losing control over me. When I told him it was because of what had happened between us, he said he would not accept that. He said it had to be because of something else; found somewhere where I had more people my age to hang with, somewhere I liked the music better; etc. But it couldn't be because of him! As if I didn't know why I was leaving. :mad:

[outcast]

Reg, this is a very good post indeed. I'd read all this before and it was sooo my old cult leader. OMG. Thanks for making it available to others. :)

[mary]

When I told my SA pastor he was leaving, he got mad, too. I also knew it was because he was losing control over me. When I told him it was because of what had happened between us, he said he would not accept that. He said it had to be because of something else; found somewhere where I had more people my age to hang with, somewhere I liked the music better; etc. But it couldn't be because of him! As if I didn't know why I was leaving. :mad:

Some of y'all had pastors who at least didn't tip their hands as to exactly how much in league with Satan they really were. (But that's undeniable.)

Abbey, your old pastor sounds like a paranoid schizophrenic to me. (I probably shouldn't be diagnosing people long-distance or at all, for I have no medical degree, but if it quacks like a duck...) If you wanted to - but why? - you could look at the DSM-IV-TR online and find him there. (That's the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed., Text Revision." It's THE gold standard text for the diagnosis of mental and psychiatric disorders.) There are people who are hospitalized in lock-down units on virtually an indefinite basis who are more in touch with reality than your old pastor is. I know this to be true: some of them were our clients when I worked in Social Security disability law practices. We'd get SSDI benefits purely on psychiatric grounds for people who were much more sane than your old pastor appears to be.

He should leave the ministry and instead, spend his time and money on "getting well." There are drugs out there like Seroquel, Haldol and Prozac that might make a difference ( ;) :cool: :D ) in "how he sees the world." :D

In my case, there was no discussion about "why I was leaving." I was thrown out: my husband finally told "pastor" to keep his hands to himself where I was concerned. "Pastor" thereupon went nuclear and said, among other things, "This is a church, not a corporation! People hug each other in churches!" Three weeks after that confrontation, I told "pastor" I didn't like how he talked to my husband; I said, "You sort of morphed into my father for a few minutes there." (My father was a very bad guy and "pastor" knew it.) "Pastor" came back with, "(Your husband) is going to leave this church but you're going to stay here. Then he won't see it when we hug in private." I sneered at him, but inside, I was screaming, NO! Shortly after that, "pastor" said, "You compared me to a wicked man. You are forever beyond my forgiveness and reconciliation." I said, "You can't say that to me. The Lord forgives and you need to as well." I apologized for comparing him to my father, but four times, he refused to accept it; instead, he said, "Give it up. I will never forgive you." I offered to send back the church key, and he didn't decline it. He threw me out... for what? I was scrupulously honest with the elder I spoke to about this; I was honest with the clerk of Presbytery; I was honest with the denomination. I was rebuffed by all. This man richly needs to be held accountable, but it's likely that he never will be, except by God.

The Body of Christ is dealt a blow because this evil individual persistently and wrongfully occupies a pulpit as one of its "ministers." That blow, however, will not be permanent, and it will be rectified: I trust the Lord to do it. While I hope He provides a home for us by means of this new church effort of ours, if He does not, then that's fine, too. His ways are so much higher than ours.

May the Lord bless and keep strictly for Himself all of us here who have been victimized by sociopaths, NPD types and other vicious ones. And may He give us the grace and His heart to pray that they would be healed as He is healing us of our infirmities.

mary

[Anna Marta]

Mary when I read your story I am convinced it should be written for others to read. It could be done in third person disguising names and places while keeping all the facts of actual happenings true to the events. I wish I were more gifted and could help you.

Actually there are so many GREAT stories here... I learned more here in one week about how normal I was than I did reading the many books I bought. This website and our recovery group are definitely special. We encompass the essence of a safe group and I thank God for all of you! :D

Love and respect for us all,
Anna Marta

[ex-shep]

Mary when I read your story I am convinced it should be written for others to read. It could be done in third person disguising names and places while keeping all the facts of actual happenings true to the events. I wish I were more gifted and could help you.

Actually there are so many GREAT stories here... I learned more here in one week about how normal I was than I did reading the many books I bought. This website and our recovery group are definitely special. We encompass the essence of a safe group and I thank God for all of you! :D

Love and respect for us all,
Anna Marta


If a member is comfortable, it would be interesting to hear other stories. It can be freeing for the writer. Writing a fact sheet on the bible school was great Christmas present to myself in 1984. There already was one out on the Community. I have used psuedonyms and fictional localities without difficulty for years. No need to feel pressured, but any takers out there? :)

[mary]

Mary when I read your story I am convinced it should be written for others to read. It could be done in third person disguising names and places while keeping all the facts of actual happenings true to the events. I wish I were more gifted and could help you.

Actually there are so many GREAT stories here... I learned more here in one week about how normal I was than I did reading the many books I bought. This website and our recovery group are definitely special. We encompass the essence of a safe group and I thank God for all of you! :D

Love and respect for us all,
Anna Marta

Thanks, Anna Marta.

I know I keep going over and over it and I wish I could stop -- but there's no "closure" on it yet. The Lord will have the final say on my "pastor," and - there will be the mercy there for him that I've prayed for. And someday, there'll be ultimate peace for me.

You're absolute right about there being tons of great stories here. Sad, poignant, puzzling, upsetting, outrageous: we've got it all.

Speaking of "peace," as I did above, yesterday I went to my orthopaedic surgeon to see about my left hip. He took x-rays and told me that my hip has a "continuing fracture" in it. I have "apparently adjusted to it," he says, and that's why I can still walk - painfully, but I walk. So - I'm walking around on a fractured hip. I take Oxycontin (not a lot, but just enough to take the edge off) - and I'm trying to start a church, hosting people here all next week... I must be flaming nuts. :p :eek: :D

Anyway, because I'm not a candidate for surgery of any kind (platelets and white blood cells are too low), they're going to do an "electronic bone stimulation" therapy on me. I'm going to be wired up with electrodes every night to see if this will grow some new bone and somewhat heal the fracture. HA! :D I'm already "Mothra" to some people around here - now I can be Frankenstein, too, and really scare the tar out of people! (I'm sorry, but this is tickling my funny bone. I'd laugh harder, but my hip hurts too much. ;) :) My husband doesn't think this is funny, but he's of German and Austrian descent, so "funny" is rather of an alien concept to him... :cool:) The doctor said that the best we can hope for is a 50% reduction in pain and maybe I'd get some healing of the bone. I'd still eventually need a total hip replacement, as I had on the right several years ago, but we don't have to think about that now. I'm just very encouraged now, and laughing about it as well.

Onward and upward!

Love and the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ to all,

mary

[Reg]

If a member is comfortable, it would be interesting to hear other stories. It can be freeing for the writer. Writing a fact sheet on the bible school was great Christmas present to myself in 1984. There already was one out on the Community. I have used psuedonyms and fictional localities without difficulty for years. No need to feel pressured, but any takers out there? :)
ex-shep,

I decided to put my story together. So far I'm up to 52 pages so far. :eek:

I may try to get it published. I plan to name it.

From 2% to 100%
From a Biker to the Bible and Becoming a Christian

[Elisabeth]

If a member is comfortable, it would be interesting to hear other stories. It can be freeing for the writer. Writing a fact sheet on the bible school was great Christmas present to myself in 1984. There already was one out on the Community. I have used psuedonyms and fictional localities without difficulty for years. No need to feel pressured, but any takers out there? :)
This bit about writing our stories is interesting. I have been journaling on my computer for over four years, most of it has ended up being about my SA and the journey to true faith. I am on page 115 now.:D

[abbey]

mary wrote:

Abbey, your old pastor sounds like a paranoid schizophrenic to me. (I probably shouldn't be diagnosing people long-distance or at all, for I have no medical degree, but if it quacks like a duck...) If you wanted to - but why? - you could look at the DSM-IV-TR online and find him there. (That's the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed., Text Revision." It's THE gold standard text for the diagnosis of mental and psychiatric disorders.) There are people who are hospitalized in lock-down units on virtually an indefinite basis who are more in touch with reality than your old pastor is. I know this to be true: some of them were our clients when I worked in Social Security disability law practices. We'd get SSDI benefits purely on psychiatric grounds for people who were much more sane than your old pastor appears to be.

He should leave the ministry and instead, spend his time and money on "getting well." There are drugs out there like Seroquel, Haldol and Prozac that might make a difference ( ;) :cool: :D ) in "how he sees the world." :D

MAry, i dont think my old pastor was a schizophrenic either? :( I was on a wards for nerves quite a few times and can identify a PS. Although he IS paranoid! See with ex-shep writing his story it makes me want to write mine so all you guys can get a firm grip on this bizarre warfare group I was with. It is a horror story!

When its finished, if God allows me to write it, youll be utterly amazed at how crazy these people were! Unbelievable!

I cant quit pin a label on the old pastor. I can say that he was into control, obsessed with God to the point he hurt others badly! He spoke in tongues and I did have a spiritual filling of the Holy spirit when he layed hands upon me. He was very very careful to stay away from "worldly" things. Hed feel guilty watching a football game, even tho he loved sports. He was very generous with money. But he also was a fire and briimestone kinda guy. There was a lack of love with him. His worship of God was based in fear. When he prayed, its like he was praying to a God that woulkd punish him for watching a football game. So he was trying to teach me similar guilt trips. Like he didnt listen to secular music, and he wouldnt ALLOW me Or anyone else in the group to either.

He was mainly a deliverance minister and got a kick out of the demonic. He once told me that him and an ex-satanist were at a christian rock concert and this satanist was filled with demons. He had to cast em all out. Anyhow, at the concert, a demon came out of this woman and claimed that 95% of the people (kids) at the concert werent even christians. And he claimed to see demons all over the theater?

These stories scared me. I was not fascinated, but he was! HE WAS OBSESSED with demons and the whole spiritual powers, realm, warfare.

Personally, i HATED talking about demons and illuminati! He acted quite humble and sane, in all honesty. He has a lovely family, lots of money, and was quite smart.

I have mixed feelings about him, cause he was a godly man. But he just went way overboard with everything.

Ill need to sit down and write my story someday mary....then maybe we can put a label on the man??

Love AB

[mary]

Abbey, but "he who is not with Me is against Me..." (Matthew 12:30.) And "(t)here is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18.)

Anyone who is obsessed with demons and getting a kick out of them is probably more of that world than they are of Christ's kingdom. "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world." (1 John 4:4.) We are to have nothing to do with demons except to pray to the Lord Jesus to rebuke them. (Jude 9.)

The Lord gave your old pastor a lovely family, lots of money and intelligence out of His providence, not His grace. (I don't believe in "common grace," but a discussion of that could get quite involved and I'm not going to do it here. I would refer anyone who's interested to the debate between Richard Mouw and David Engelsma on the topic; see also www.prca.org (http://www.prca.org).)

You could, indeed, sit down and write your story and then you'd see this man for what he is. You'd then look down at your feet and say, "Feet, thank you for walking - away from this nutcase!" :D

Love,

mary

[Elisabeth]

I have mixed feelings about him, cause he was a godly man.

Even though that one pastor abused me so horribly, for a long time I thought he was a godly man. My true healing, seeing the ways I was mistaught, and starting to see God as the loving God He is, couldn't even really begin until it finally got through my head that he wasn't a godly man, just masquarading as such. What you wrote on a different post, about him calling your need to be with your child idolatry, was not the statement from a godly man!
One thing a previous counselor said to me is the reason why an abused person stays in the relationship is a need was being met, although in a very twisted way, and as a result, the abused person can not see her abuser as who he really is. Think about that.

[Hope 98]

After having something of a light-hearted discussion about sociopaths around the dinner table, prompted by this post, I had a counseling appointment in which I was told that I am NOT a sociopath!

I found it funny. The discussion in counseling was not related to sociopathy at all - I was just remarking that in the midst of an argument if someone would accuse me of being selfish for example - I'd be tripped up by wondering if they may be right. Even if I concluded that I was NOT selfish, the hesitation would essentially lose me the argument.

The counselor remarked that my response is what made me "not a sociopath".

Hooray! I'm off the hook!

(there was more substance to the session and it was helpful - just not relevent to this thread :) )

[User321]

Hi, I'm new here.

I found this thread because after two years of marriage I believe my husband may be a sociopath.

I am Christian, and my husband claims to be too.

I've research A LOT about sociopaths, and I am confident my husband is one so I'm not really looking for an opinion on that matter.

What I really need to know is from a biblical perspective, what am I supposed to with the concept of sociopathy.

My understanding is that it's basically a mental/social disorder and not something they're capable of changing on their own.

I like to think that there is a spiritual remedy that can help. Healing of some sort? I don't know.

Ok so I know that God has the power to do anything, but doesn't he need a willing vessel? My husband claims to be Christian and when I call him out on the horrible way that he treats me and acts so selfishly, he agrees that its wrong and promises to change. The change never occurs.

So I guess what I'm wanting to know is, are sociopaths just indefinitely broken, or can the be healed even if they inwardly don't want it?

Thanks for any advice you can provide.

-User321