Indeed some philosophers have reflected on the complex relationship between feelings and values. The Greek term pathos in opposition to ethos or moral character, means first of all the origin and source of affections, impulses, alterations and disturbances of the mind; what the classics called passions and today are called emotions.
On the other hand, there is the biblical wisdom that invites us to speak of “wisdom of the heart”, rather than Emotional intelligence.
Indeed, in the biblical tradition, as well as in Greek poetry, it is the heart that regulates actions. In it the psychic life of the person is based, as well as the affective life, and joy, sadness, courage, discouragement, emotion, hatred are attributed to him. It is the seat of intellectual life, that is, it is intelligent, it has ideas, it can be foolish and lazy, blind and stubborn, and it is also the center of moral life, of discernment, of what is good and what is bad.
In Hebrew, indeed, the heart is much more than the seat of the affections. It also contains memories and thoughts, projects and decisions. You can have a broad heart (open, intelligent vision) or also a hardened heart and little attentive to the needs of others. In the heart the person dialogues with herself and assumes her responsibility. The heart for the Semis and Egyptians, is above all, the seat of thoughts, of intellectual life, so that the "Man of Heart" means "Wise Prudent."
Emotional knowledge is essential to help others, both in the professional world and in social and community intervention. You get the idea, that it would seem unprofessional, to be affectionate; if this were true, humanity would not exist, the animal would not have been humanized. What sustains humanity is nothing other than the heart, reflected in love. The heart interested in the other, especially in the vulnerable and needy other.
It is suspected that when we are not affectionate in dealing, we take refuge in technique, in coldness, in limiting our interest in data, the law, tradition, due to the difficulty of managing feelings. "What we have behind and what we have in front of us are tiny issues compared to what we have within us" Emerson.
