It's Not Just a Blue Christmas. We're Lonely.

Quick to Listen

Christianity Today

Religion, Christianity, Religion & Spirituality

4.3 • 622 Ratings

🗓️ 26 December 2018

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Research shows our society's widespread isolation. What's the church's role in alleviating it? While technology, living situations, and neighborhood have all played roles in perpetuating these feelings of loneliness, arguably so have many of churches, says Ashley Hales, the author of Finding Holy in the Suburbs: Living Faithfully in the Land of Too Much. “There’s a sense that our church structures have made people more lonely,” said Hales. “People can just come as they please. If they’re really unknown, they’re not getting plugged into any smaller forms of community.” Part of it is changing cultural expectations of church, said Hales. “We want church to be this customizable religious experience, instead of saying this is the bride of Christ, it’s going to be painful to be a part of, that it’s one of the only organizations where people of every tribe, tongue, and nation are getting together amidst different socioeconomic and racial differences,” she said. “ Hales joined digital media producer Morgan Lee and editor in chief Mark Galli to discuss the structural and existential reasons for our loneliness, how to be a good neighbor, and why it’s the small patterns of our life that make a big difference when it comes to relationships. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This episode is brought to you in part by The Apologetics Guy Show, the podcast that helps you find clear answers to tough questions about Christianity.
0:11.0	Learn to explain your faith with courage and compassion.
0:14.5	Join Moody Bible Institute professor Dr. Mikhail del Rosario at Apologeticsky.com.
0:22.3	Today is Wednesday, December 26th, and this is quick to listen, where we set aside
0:27.5	hashtags and hot takes discuss a major cultural event.
0:31.2	On today's show, Ashley Hales joins us to discuss the epidemic of loneliness afflicting our society.
0:46.0	Thanks for joining us this week. I'm Morgan Lee, Associate Digital Media Producer here at Christianity
0:50.7	today, and I'm joined by my co-host and our editor-in-chief, Mark Galley.
0:55.4	Good morning.
0:56.5	Good morning.
0:57.9	That was definitely like an NPR.
0:59.5	Good morning.
0:59.8	Happy, what's it, boxing day in Canada.
1:03.6	Shout out.
1:04.0	And in the UK, too.
1:05.6	Okay.
1:06.1	There you go.
1:07.0	All right.
1:07.9	So who's our guest today?
1:09.0	Our guest is Ashley Hale. She's a writer, speaker, pastor's wife, mother DeFour. She holds a Ph.D. in English from University of Edinburgh, Scotland. And she lives in Southern California suburbs, helping her husband plant a church, Resurrection Orange County. Her writing has been featured in books and culture, among other prestigious outlets. And she's the author of Finding Holy in the Suburbs, Living Faithfully in the Land of Too Much.
1:32.8	Welcome, Ashley, and I just have one recommendation for your publisher.
1:36.8	Yeah.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Christianity Today, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Christianity Today and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.