We are made to relate to others. This is simply who we are. It is evident in where we live and how we live.
We can try and hide the fact that we actually need other people but this reality will eventually catch up to us. Our ability to relate with other people is what makes us human. We might think we can be stoic enough to be entirely self-sufficient, but we will fail.
Increasingly however, we are losing the ability to relate to others well. In our modern attempts to fix our need for connection we have used whatever means possible. Research has shown that in order to compensate for our relationship needs, we connect to our “screens” in the same relational way we would to another person.
There are many issues facing our generation. How to relate to each other and everything around us is one that is defining our culture and ultimately our future.
We need to begin asking “who” rather than “what” technology is to us. We have to start asking ourselves what we are using technology to replace in our lives.
In many ways, the full impact upon culture has yet to be seen. We are, more than ever, unaware of where our food comes from, how our clothes are made, or how to fix the very electronics that fill our homes. The daily rhythms of life that used to engage us with creation now seem foreign.
We need to begin choosing how we interact. The definition of idolatry is anything that takes the relational place for us that prioritizes our time and energy over God. We are in a cultural battle for our hearts.
Social commentary on the subject already exists such as the films “Her” and “Men, Women, and Children.” People are writing articles on the lasting effects on culture: an article at Huffington Post describes some of these affects on children and attention spans (Here’s What A Constantly Plugged-In Life Is Doing to Kid’s Bodies), and a New York Times article explains how universities are now offering classes to teach students how to relate to each other (Love, Actually).
We will always need relationships with others. The question is where will we find it? Our need will drive us to any means possible unless we are aware of the need and seek out healthy ways to relate.