mediating institutions<\/a>\u201c\u2013such as civic organizations, voluntary associations, and other memberships\u2013are also in decline.<\/p>\nThose include involvement in churches. \u00a0Congregations are communities of faith where individuals have traditionally found love, support, and connections with others.<\/p>\n
The government, the health sector, and the culture as a whole have been mobilizing to fight obesity. \u00a0But the institutions of marriage, the family, and parenting continue to take hits.<\/p>\n
Some thoughts and Biblical reflections after the jump.<\/p>\n
Evidently, physical health depends not just on the body but on being a member of \u00a0larger bodies.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is not good that the man should be alone,\u201d said the Lord God (Genesis 2:18). \u00a0Therefore, God instituted marriage. \u00a0Thus began the family. \u00a0Husbands and wives had a social bond\u00a0with each other, then, as parents, with their children, who had a social bond with each other. \u00a0The family led to the extended family.<\/p>\n
The institution of the family was the basis of the clans and tribes that formed nations.<\/p>\n
God established the \u201cestates\u201d for human flourishing\u2013the household (family, the economy), the church, and the state\u2013and gave us vocations in which we are to love and serve our neighbors.<\/p>\n
Today, pursuing individual autonomy at all costs is the ideal today. \u00a0Our culture exalts self-fulfillment, self-interest, and self-divination. \u00a0People walk away from\u00a0their marriages and abandon their children in the name of self-fulfillment.<\/p>\n
In contrast, the Christian ethic is one of self-denial and self-sacrifice out of love for others. \u00a0As Jesus said,\u00a0\u201cIf anyone would come after me, let him\u00a0deny himself and\u00a0take up his cross\u00a0daily and follow me\u201d (Luke 9:23). \u00a0But, paradoxically, this daily crucifixion of self leads to finding oneself.<\/span><\/p>\nThis research suggests that the pursuit of individual autonomy, far from being a formula for happiness, as is often\u00a0assumed, can be\u00a0physically harmful.<\/p>\n
But although many people today voluntarily live just for themselves, others yearn for human contact. \u00a0They are isolated, but not by choice. \u00a0They may want to get married, but it isn\u2019t easy to find someone to marry. \u00a0(And, according to Scripture, \u00a0marriage is a vocation and not everyone is called to it.) \u00a0They may want to belong with other people, but\u00a0there is no one for them.<\/p>\n
There are people who are constitutionally loners. \u00a0But though they may be single, they still may have brothers, sisters, parents, and other relatives who keep them from being absolutely alone. \u00a0Also fellow workers, friends, and internet comrades.<\/p>\n
What can be done to bring back a sense of community? \u00a0To help people build social connections? \u00a0Does the government have a role? \u00a0To what extent is our \u201ccommunication\u201d technology helping and to what extent is it hurting? \u00a0What can the church do?<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Photo by geralt, Pixabay, CC0, Public domain<\/em><\/p>\n\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p><\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u00a0 A study\u00a0has found that social isolation is\u00a0a greater threat to public health than obesity. A meta-analysis of 148 studies found that loneliness, social isolation, and living alone showed a strong correlation with premature death, one equal to or exceeding the commonly-accepted risk factors such as obesity. Conversely, according to a report on the research, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":29053,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,16,30,37,48],"tags":[4199,5676,5674,5673,5675,1616],"class_list":["post-29050","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-family","category-medicine","category-psychology","category-vocation","tag-communities","tag-estates","tag-health-effects-of-social-isolation","tag-loneliness","tag-mediating-institutions","tag-obesity"],"yoast_head":"\n
Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A study has found that loneliness and social isolation are greater factors in early death than obesity.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A study has found that loneliness and social isolation are greater factors in early death than obesity.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Cranach\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/cranachblog\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-08-07T09:45:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-08-06T10:46:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/305\/2017\/08\/despair-513529_640-e1502009054573.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"407\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Gene Veith\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Gene Veith\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/\",\"name\":\"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2017-08-07T09:45:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-08-06T10:46:12+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#\/schema\/person\/f9ca8670bcc51908a78994c0484dbfa1\"},\"description\":\"A study has found that loneliness and social isolation are greater factors in early death than obesity.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/\",\"name\":\"Cranach\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#\/schema\/person\/f9ca8670bcc51908a78994c0484dbfa1\",\"name\":\"Gene Veith\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/054d79faea5d476edd8f99e5f14fb17f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/054d79faea5d476edd8f99e5f14fb17f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Gene Veith\"},\"description\":\"Gene Edward Veith, Jr. is a writer and retired literature professor, serving as Provost Emeritus at Patrick Henry College. He has authored over 25 books on Christianity and culture, literature, classical education, and theology. Dr. Veith previously held academic and editorial roles at Concordia University Wisconsin and WORLD Magazine. A respected voice in Lutheran and classical education circles, he holds a Ph.D. in English and several honorary doctorates. He and his wife, Jackquelyn, live in St. Louis and have three children and twelve grandchildren.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/cranachblog\/\",\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gene_Edward_Veith\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/author\/geneveith\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity","description":"A study has found that loneliness and social isolation are greater factors in early death than obesity.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity","og_description":"A study has found that loneliness and social isolation are greater factors in early death than obesity.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/","og_site_name":"Cranach","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/cranachblog\/","article_published_time":"2017-08-07T09:45:20+00:00","article_modified_time":"2017-08-06T10:46:12+00:00","og_image":[{"width":600,"height":407,"url":"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/305\/2017\/08\/despair-513529_640-e1502009054573.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Gene Veith","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Gene Veith","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/","name":"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#website"},"datePublished":"2017-08-07T09:45:20+00:00","dateModified":"2017-08-06T10:46:12+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#\/schema\/person\/f9ca8670bcc51908a78994c0484dbfa1"},"description":"A study has found that loneliness and social isolation are greater factors in early death than obesity.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2017\/08\/loneliness-is-greater-threat-to-health-than-obesity\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Loneliness is greater threat to health than obesity"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/","name":"Cranach","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#\/schema\/person\/f9ca8670bcc51908a78994c0484dbfa1","name":"Gene Veith","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/054d79faea5d476edd8f99e5f14fb17f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/054d79faea5d476edd8f99e5f14fb17f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Gene Veith"},"description":"Gene Edward Veith, Jr. is a writer and retired literature professor, serving as Provost Emeritus at Patrick Henry College. He has authored over 25 books on Christianity and culture, literature, classical education, and theology. Dr. Veith previously held academic and editorial roles at Concordia University Wisconsin and WORLD Magazine. A respected voice in Lutheran and classical education circles, he holds a Ph.D. in English and several honorary doctorates. He and his wife, Jackquelyn, live in St. Louis and have three children and twelve grandchildren.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/cranachblog\/","https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Gene_Edward_Veith"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/author\/geneveith\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29050","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1281"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29050"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29050\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29053"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29050"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29050"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29050"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"despair-513529_640\"](\"https:\/\/wp-media.patheos.com\/blogs\/sites\/305\/2017\/08\/despair-513529_640-e1502009054573.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n