Nothing is wrong with you for feeling lonely right now.
It is a fundamental human need to feel connected to others, as essential to our wellbeing as food or shelter. Yet loneliness has become a public health epidemic due to factors like digital media, cultural values of work and individualism, and even the structure of our workplaces and neighborhoods.
In April of 2019, Dr. Vivek Murthy, physician and former US Surgeon General, spoke about this at the Festival of Faiths in Louisville, Kentucky. Six years later in our first episode, Rev. Dr. Lauren Jones Mayfield listens for how his words resonate in her own life and world. During this moving exchange across time and space, Dr. Mayfield points out that underneath the loneliness epidemic is a yearning to belong and calls for a return to the “front porch” where we know and are known. It is from that place of belonging that we are better able to live in an orientation toward love and curiosity rather than fear. This is a conversation we need more than ever; how to find our way back to belonging.
About Dr. Vivek Murthy: Dr. Vivek H. Murthy served as the 19th Surgeon General of the United States from 2014-2017 and as 21st Surgeon General of the United States from 2021-2025. He is an Indian-American physician and author, known for his work on public health issues like loneliness and social media's impact on youth mental health, and for co-founding several health-focused organizations. Murthy earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard and both his M.D. and M.B.A. from Yale, completing his residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital. He is the author of the New York Times Bestselling Book, Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World.
About Rev. Dr. Lauren Jones Mayfield: Before returning to her home state of Kentucky in 2012, Lauren served the Riverside Church in New York City as the Director of Worship and held pastoral leadership positions in Baptist, Mennonite, and United Church of Christ churches across the country. Ordained in the United Church of Christ, Lauren completed her Doctor of Ministry degree at the Pacific School of Religion where she focused her research on social justice and transformation. As part of her doctoral project, she created liturgy for the communal work of advocacy, considered the role of faith in the public square, and led an innovative Reparations Task Force as the Associate Pastor of Care and Justice at Highland Baptist Church in Louisville, KY. Lauren became the Executive Director of the Center for Interfaith Relations in December 2024 and believes it is interfaith dialogue that connects us through collective curiosity and communal wondering.
The Center for Interfaith Relations celebrates the diversity of faith traditions, expresses gratitude for our unity, and strengthens the role of faith in society through common action. They host the nationally renowned Festival of Faiths and offer year-round programming that fosters compassion in our world. They are also committed to sharing the insights and inspiration rooted in the wisdom of faith traditions, and strive to cultivate communities that are true to the motto of “Many Faiths, One Heart, Common Action.”
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