Government Solves Problem Of Loneliness!

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another. Romans 12:10

Does anyone remember the song “Guilty” by Barbra Streisand and Barry Gibb? I’ve always liked that song, but I bring it up just to highlight two lines:

Make it a crime to be lonely or sad
It oughta be illegal

Well, my husband showed me an article the other day that says it’s happened. They’ve made it a crime to be lonely, at least in Japan. (Well, sort of.)

In 2024 there are MANY factors contributing to an increased sense of isolation for a growing number of people. The concern has become great enough in Japan that they are enacting laws requiring local governments to create resources for those who are struggling. I hope it works. But most of us realize that government solutions aren’t always the most efficient or effective.

See if you can make sense of these excerpts from an article (now expired) on the website of The Japan Times:

The legislation… calls for creating a task force headed by the prime minister for the implementation of countermeasures at the Cabinet Office while requiring the government to formulate a priority policy that will serve as guidelines for such measures…
…the legislation obliges local governments to make efforts to set up regional councils made up of groups offering aid to people suffering from isolation.

This is worse than legalese. It’s bureaucracy-ese!

All the government has to do to solve a problem is: Create a task force. Implement countermeasures. Formulate a policy. Create guidelines. Make efforts. Set up regional councils. Until finally they get to the local level where the people that actually have the problem might theoretically get some help.

God’s way is much simpler.

Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; … distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. Romans 12:10-13

I say it’s simple, but of course it only works when individual Christians put it into practice. The same cultural trends that are increasing people’s experience of loneliness may also increase the difficulties we face in carrying out God’s plan. If we have been “lagging in diligence” about obeying these commands, it’s time to get intentional.

But there’s another important lesson here. The very next morning after reading about this new law in Japan, I read this quote from C.S. Lewis:

“Loneliness, I am pretty sure, is one of the ways by which we can grow spiritually.” (from The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Vol. III)

We cannot completely avoid all negative feelings, nor can we always eliminate them as quickly as we would like. We certainly can’t expect to legislate them away. Besides, bad feelings can be used by God for good. In his letter, Lewis went on to say that if we need to become more actively loving toward others, we are more likely to realize that in loneliness than in pleasant company. If we’ll take some time to sit with any negative feeling, whether it be loneliness or anger or grief or hurt feelings, there are things we can learn, about ourselves and about God.

There is no government system that can turn this world and this life into heaven. Negative feelings are to be expected and, if we allow them to, we can learn from them. Loneliness, for example, may be the reminder we need to reach out to a neighbor or a fellow church member. It’s quite likely that they are lonely too.

Our instinct is to get rid of any bad feeling as quickly as possible, and that’s understandable. We turn to drink, food, entertainment, or whatever else we can find to distract ourselves. And if that doesn’t work, we want to make it a crime. But such defensive measures often result in a missed opportunity for growth.

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. James 1:2-4

Dear God, we pray Your blessings on those who struggle with loneliness. Help us to reach out to one another with servant-minded hearts. We pray that through our difficulties we might be learn to be more patient and more compassionate. We trust in You as our Protector and Provider. In Jesus’s name, Amen.

by Christie Cole Atkins

Related posts:

For more examples of “one another” commands, see my previous article on Dependent Faith.

For more about sitting with negative emotions, check out Dangle On That Hook.