Strengthening the fabric of community

Where do you find community? Your family, workplace, tennis court, book club? A recent New York Times piece by Brad Stullberg observed that the connectivity of community is fraying in our country.

He lamented the weakening of traditional ties to religious institutions, and noted that the simple ritual of seeing the same people over time, weekly, daily, monthly, knits the fabric of connectivity that can cushion us in misfortune or lift us in times of joy. He sees this need to connect as not so much theological as socio-emotional. “When you aren’t missed, you become lonely,” he said.

Goodwill creates community by launching people into the workforce. If you are in the workplace, consider the unique connections you find within your work family. The science of group dynamics shows that, regardless of the group’s tenure or maturity (not the maturity of the individuals, but the effectiveness of group function), when one person enters or leaves a group, this change brings the entire group back to the initial stage of group growth, which is dysfunction. Hierarchy and individual personification are redefined to accommodate the change.

Father Charles Strobel, who passed away on August 8, regularly saw hundreds of people; many of you are in one of his numerous spheres of influence. Room in the Inn was his most visible community, but his network of beloved friends was much wider. How many hundreds felt seen, recognized and loved by this great, good man? Our community is reshuffling, reordering and redefining itself in the sudden, gaping loneliness of his absence. He would want us to coalesce in this vacuum, adopt his humility and strengthen the fabric of our personal communities. Take someone’s hand. Neutralize the loneliness. Let’s all be a little more like Charlie.