{"id":546,"date":"2025-10-01T22:44:59","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T22:44:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/?page_id=546"},"modified":"2025-10-06T00:19:34","modified_gmt":"2025-10-06T00:19:34","slug":"tml2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/tml2\/","title":{"rendered":"What is this Exhibit?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-superbfont-small-font-size\" style=\"padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\"><em>Churches and Faith Communities as Third Places\/ 1 of 5<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-28f84493 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:66.66%\">\n<p class=\"has-superbfont-small-font-size\">This exhibit is just one element of a broader campus response to Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy\u2019s 2023 advisory \u2014 Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation. As Dr. Murthy makes clear, loneliness is a serious problem nationwide, which means it is also a serious problem on the Boston College campus. This exhibit presumes \u201c3rd places\u201d are part of our remedy and explores how churches\/faith communities can (and do) function in this role. Please note that the Catholic Church figures most prominently herein, but there are many commonalities with other denominations.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:33.33%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized\"><a href=\"https:\/\/pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/37792968\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\" noreferrer noopener\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"791\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-791x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-690\" style=\"width:164px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-791x1024.jpg 791w, https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-768x994.jpg 768w, https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-1187x1536.jpg 1187w, https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-1583x2048.jpg 1583w, https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/tml_surgeongeneral-scaled.jpg 1978w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 791px) 100vw, 791px\" \/><\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Key points from Murthy\u2019s advisory<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1a8db29b4a189e7bdccf8ff1e2f55bcf\">Loneliness is a public health crisis and poses a profound threat to well-being both<br>individually and societally<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-96aa3b44c2e1f0adc1d5c98deca70b3a\">A significant percentage of adults and teens in the U.S. are lonely, and the problem is<br>demonstrably growing<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-6a1e8477a8fe2262cdaad00a4fdffbf3\">Personal health consequences of loneliness:<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-e4cdf96ff0bc71cea53200e3c0a7bdd4\">Hikes premature death rate comparably to smoking 15 cigarettes per day<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-bae0b2f6ecfc8020a42d5459e1f8b324\">Heightens the risk of heart disease, stroke, and dementia<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-8ec1adba5f9aa857a37320b21b6e8d24\">Worsens depression, anxiety, and cognitive function<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-97ebd3b658451224717ecb477861d4c8\">Weakens the immune system<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li class=\"has-mono-2-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-db9590913d8996a91606d863c3dc38be\">Society suffers too since persistent loneliness impacts productivity, engagement, and<br>resilience in schools, workplaces, communities\u2026<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-superbfont-medium-font-size\">\u201cWhat drives these profound health and well-being outcomes? Social connection is a fundamental human need, as essential to survival as food, water, and shelter. Throughout history, our ability to rely on one another has been crucial to survival. Now, even in modern times, we human beings are biologically wired for social connection. Our brains have adapted to expect proximity to others.\u201d1<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:4px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-superbfont-small-font-size\">Dr. Murthy recommends a national strategy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has-superbfont-medium-font-size\">\u201cWe are called to build a movement to mend the social fabric of our nation. It will take all of us\u2014individuals and families, schools and workplaces, health care and public health systems, technology companies, governments, faith organizations, and communities\u2014working together to destigmatize loneliness and change our cultural and policy response to it. It will require reimagining the structures, policies, and programs that shape a community to best support the development of healthy relationships.\u201d2<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:3px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-superbfont-small-font-size\">We meet lonely people every day, but can we recognize their struggle?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:5px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-a89b3969 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-border-color wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/tml\/\" style=\"border-color:#1e1d1d;border-width:1px;border-radius:4px\">Back<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-border-color wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/tml3\/\" style=\"border-color:#1e1d1d;border-width:1px;border-radius:4px\">Next<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Churches and Faith Communities as Third Places\/ 1 of 5 This exhibit is just one element of a broader campus response to Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy\u2019s 2023 advisory \u2014 Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation. As Dr. Murthy makes clear, loneliness is a serious problem nationwide, which means it is also a serious problem [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-546","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/546","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=546"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/546\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":844,"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/546\/revisions\/844"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/flourishingtogether.bc.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=546"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}