The Loneliness Epidemic
Recently, while working on a paper for a class, I came across an article by UC Health about the epidemic of loneliness that is affecting Americans in the post-pandemic world. My own experience of the pandemic was pretty minor compared to many—we all saw each other less—but my normal life was not horribly changed. However, the lives of many Americans were greatly disrupted. Here is what one doctor said about the pandemic and how it is still affecting Americans:
“Stay-at-home orders resulted in people isolating themselves, and in a time of heightened anxiety during this collective trauma, keeping yourself isolated was actually a way of protecting yourself that, now, has been integrated into people's defense mechanisms,” Dr. Rush recalled. “The internal message became that being alone protects me from these things that are scary and out of my control. And that's now become a habit that is really hard to break.” [1]
Regardless of your opinions about any of this (I’m certainly not trying to be political), it does seem to be generally true that the social fabric of our country evolved because of the pandemic. And the result is that many of us are still less social. Some of us find it more difficult to be in social situations. Many of us try to find community online, but hesitate to be around people in person. All said, there does seem to be more loneliness in our culture. And that loneliness, according to this same article by UC Health, actually has health consequences.
From the point of view of the Bible, this shouldn’t surprise us. The God of the universe has eternally existed as a tri-unity. From eternity past, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit have been in constant, intimate community with one another. When God created people, he didn’t create us because he was lonely—he already had perfect community. Rather, God created us as an overflow of his love, and as social beings (just like himself). This means that at the center of the universe is a relational reality.
Because God created us in his own image, it shouldn’t surprise us that we too need community. We need one another. We need to be able to know others deeply, and be known deeply. We can't simply know each other from a distance, or only online, we need to know one another in close proximity. We need to shake hands, and give hi-fives, and hug one another, and share meals together. This is who God created us to be.
At 24 Church, one of our core identities is FAMILY. When we come to know Jesus, we’re adopted into the family of God. So let’s live like family! Please don’t let your Christianity be a Sunday-only thing. We need more than just Sunday mornings.
We need to go about our everyday lives, for the glory of God, together. So I want to encourage you, find community at 24 Church. Join an MC, join a Bible study, grab a coffee together, invite a church friend over for dinner, watch football with one another, or start serving with others. Don’t choose loneliness! We weren’t made to be lonely. Choosing community can be hard, but it's worth it!
- Ben
