[Tension & Renewal - VIII]
Picture someone in a dimly lit room, headphones on, playing a video game or watching Stranger Things reruns. For, say, 12 hours. Hungry? That’s what GrubHub is for. Need a box of tissues or water? Order it on same-day deliver with Amazon. Friendship? You have access to everyone right in front of you via any messenger app.
From one angle, this is the height of Aristotelian independence and Western isolation. In other words, it’s the purest example of human advancement.
From another angle, this is the epitome of human unhealth. All aspects of a life well lived—on this one day, at least—are missing.
Empathy starves in that environment.
Virtue atrophies.
Goodness withers away.
Spiritual vitality dies.
Spiritual, physical, and mental renewal requires concrete engagement with others. Even further, it requires giving others access to and authority over real estate in our lives.
