Are We Lonely or Alone? with Reverend Janet Broderick

“The wonderful thing about the whole way in which the spiritual life can ease this kind of loneliness is the sense that we're all under something bigger. There's something bigger than all of us. There's a kind of equality so that you can love your brothers and sisters around you because it's not like I'm worse than you, or I'm less than you, or I'm better than you, or I have more to contribute than you.”

What is loneliness? How does it manifest? What can we do to address loneliness? What are the modern contributors toward loneliness today? “Only Connect!”…but how do we achieve connection meaningfully and with intention? In this episode that was recorded in January, Rev. Janet Broderick guides us through a thoughtful and open discussion on the impact of loneliness on the spirit, the self and in society. Reverend Broderick has since been ill with, and recovered from, Covid-19.

The Rev. Janet Broderick is the current Rector at All Saints Episcopal Church in Los Angeles, CA. Janet encourages deep worship, hands-on outreach to all populations, rigorous education, responsive work for justice. Recently, Janet served as Rector of St. Peter’s, Morristown, NJ. Before that, she was Rector at Grace Van Vorst in Jersey City. She restored the mission and the vitality of the historic urban church with a focus on social justice and support for the arts. And before that, Janet was a curate at The Church of the Epiphany in New York City. Her first rectorship was for a small parish in Westchester, NY.

Janet visits a family home in Donegal, Ireland, and has done so since she was ten years old. She apprenticed as a potter there and owned a commercial pottery shop in Manhattan. Janet graduated from the University of Michigan with a BA in History.

Janet has a daughter, a son, and a dog named Barney. Janet’s call is to proclaim the gospel, to encourage and release the gifts each soul brings, and to notice and celebrate the work of the Holy Spirit that is happening every day.