EpiscoGrrl<p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://mastodon.social/@TheComfortableSpotPodcast" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>TheComfortableSpotPodcast</span></a></span> very thought provoking. I think one of the causes you don’t mention is the loss of third spaces. We gather online rather than in person these days. In doing so, we say more as individuals but hear less and become uncomfortable interacting face to face with one another on any level. We distrust one another when we gather in person because our online experiences have taught us that the way to react to anything we disagree with is rage and blocking or doxxing. Frankly, we all need more IRL friends and to hang out with them without our devices. We need to be people to one another and for one another, not just avatars and user names. And we need to be visible and approachable by others. Reversing this trend of isolation and virtualization is going to take time, patience, and effort on all our parts. (Now I’m thinking my summer ministry might be <a href="https://episcodon.net/tags/knitting" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>knitting</span></a> in public while <a href="https://episcodon.net/tags/reading" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>reading</span></a> banned books) <a href="https://episcodon.net/tags/KnittinginPublic" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>KnittinginPublic</span></a> <a href="https://episcodon.net/tags/ReadBannedBooks" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>ReadBannedBooks</span></a> <a href="https://episcodon.net/tags/offline" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>offline</span></a></p>