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On the potential downsides of WFH triggering a drawback from workism: If community means “where you keep showing up,” then, for many people, the office is all
by Liquix 4y ago
On the potential downsides of WFH triggering a drawback from workism:
If community means “where you keep showing up,” then, for many people, the office is all that’s left. What happens when it goes the way of bowling leagues and weekly church attendance?
Bowling leagues, churches, meditation centers, hiking groups, tabletop game gatherings, music festivals, etc are alive and well! Becoming isolated from remote work, realizing one's social circle has shrank to professional acquaintances, and then finding true happiness in one of the aforementioned communities could be a net positive. Better than subsisting on a meager diet of water cooler smalltalk until retirement.
- protonbob 4y agoPlenty of us still go to church every week!
- scruple 4y agoWhat do I do if I want to "go back" to church but I don't believe? Speaking personally, and without spilling a few paragraphs of text here, it seems like that's where I am today.
- neilv 4y agoI don't know, but one idea: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_humanism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religious_humanism
- deleted 4y ago[deleted]
- pianoben 4y agoI grew up attending an explicitly irreligious "church" which provided stimulation, moral instruction, community - all the things about church that really matter to one's life, but minus dogma. Maybe you could find something similar? (it was the Ethical Society in St. Louis, MO, in case you're curious)
- pyuser583 4y agoThis is a major, major issue. Religious people say “there’s a god sized hole in your soul” maybe, but there’s defined a “church sized hole” in American society. This becomes huge once you have kids. Churches run child care, schools, family activities. They also service as hubs for ethnic groups. They’re really important, but so far no secular group has filled the gap.
- exolymph 4y agoGo to church anyway. You don't have to believe to attend services.
- rwmj 4y agoChurch isn't the only local activity by any means. As I noted in my other response[1], if you want to do charity there's volunteering groups. Or sports? We have a football team, bowls, ballet, pilates or general keep-fit. Or drinking? We have a pub meet up where they discuss philosophy (I'm not making this one up, promise!) [1] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35397479 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=35397479
- fnordpiglet 4y agoBecome a Quaker or Unitarian.
- dmoo 4y agoMy take on this is that if your religion doesn’t make you do anything you’d be ashamed of if there was no God then there is no harm. Sometimes the rights and rituals help provide context for important life events regardless of any faith you might lack.
- DoreenMichele 4y agoGo to church. Be polite. Be respectful. Don't wear your lack of belief on your sleeve. No big, really.
- gamechangr 4y agoyou join a "friendship group" or "cell group" that is offered at your local church. It's a weekly meeetup where people get to know people. Just hang out for a few weeks, then bring any questions you have up.
- lazyant 4y agomaybe look into Unitarian Universal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitarian_Universalism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unitarian_Universalism
- drewcoo 4y agoDefine "plenty." Then make this line stop dropping past the plenty level: https://news.gallup.com/poll/248837/church-membership-down-sharply-past-two-decades.aspx https://news.gallup.com/poll/248837/church-membership-down-s...
- rwmj 4y agoYeah that was a strange claim. My local village paper (distributed for free on actual paper and supported by hyperlocal advertising) is full of volunteer groups, church news, the local football club, yoga lessons, pub meet ups. > > "What happens when it goes the way of bowling leagues [...] Reading it now I notice the local bowls club is having a "no experience needed" free coaching day in a few weeks, I might have to go! It's crown green bowling though, probably not what Americans think of as bowling. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=crown+green+bowling&t=ffab&iar=images&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=crown+green+bowling&t=ffab&iar=ima...
- BossHogg 4y ago"Lawn bowling" to Americans.
- fnordpiglet 4y agoMy thought on this is it’s depressing we replaced the community with the office. That’s an emergent reality caused by the extremeness of office hours and commute times as people adjust to a new reality they will find each other again - this time in their neighborhood.