Comments on: The culture(s) we find ourselves in.

By: Nathan

Nathan — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 03:26:35 +0000

In reply to RK. And Card has truly made community the central concern of most of his novels. That said, I think that the religion that he and I share is at least slightly better on that front in Sunday observance as compared with the normative program in mainstream Christian churches, in that there is no division between clergy and laity, and that one of our two hours of Sunday services is in a classroom/discussion setting that encourages discussion and participation (and, every other week, is divided into men and women). But you're right, that's still not sufficient for the "third place" options available in previous eras.

By: RK

RK — Sun, 11 Aug 2019 00:02:57 +0000

Orson Scott Card wrote an article about this a couple years ago; he says what we're lacking is a "third place" (with home and work being the "first" and "second" places respectively) where people can gather for unstructured communal activities. As he also points out, while churches (and clubs) could potentially be these "third places" for people, structured activities (like regular Sunday services at church) are by definition not a part of these "third places" that we need. While regularly attending worship services is a worthwhile way to spend your time (and good for your soul), what we really need is more church socials like potluck dinners and women's knitting circles and that sort of thing.

By: Nathan

Nathan — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 20:20:13 +0000

In reply to Th.. I'm really not in a position to tell; I haven't had an immersive experience in a foreign culture since my mission, long before the internet was a thing.

By: Th.

Th. — Thu, 08 Aug 2019 20:07:14 +0000

Do you think Americans are particularly separated from the geographical neighbors?