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WHAT'S THE BUZZ? RESPONDING TO GOSSIP WITH PRAYER
A REPORT by the Social Issues Research Centre in Oxford, England, contained some interesting facts about gossip. It noted one recent study that found gossip accounts for 55 percent of men's conversations and 67 percent of women's. Researchers in a similar study premised that these percentages were not as interesting as the different ways the gossip was being used. For instance, men, it was suggested, use gossip for networking, to further their careers; while women more often use gossip to set moral boundaries and build relationships.
Though I've heard experts make a case for gossip's beneficial socializing effect on society, many people would agree that it can be less than productive, if not downright harmful. Talking about other people can often be about consciously or unconsciously diminishing them in order to make oneself feel better. The fact is, what people hear about another person—whether true or untrue—can cause them to regard that individual with less respect. In families, church communities, and through the news, gossip has the effect of creating divisiveness rather than establishing a foundation for progress.
Perhaps one of the most glaring aspects of the rumor mill is the constant buzz about celebrity slip-ups and the personal misdeeds of highly placed government officials. This seemingly innocent "news" can be a form of gossip that aims to point out the faults of those in power, even tempting us to relish in their demise. Even "good" gossip—chatting about the day-to-day activities of others—can sometimes be voyeuristic and verge on an invasion of privacy.
Enjoy 1 free Sentinel article or audio program each month, including content from 1898 to today.
July 23, 2007 &
July 30, 2007
double issue
View Issue
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LETTERS
with contributions from DAVID E. MORSE, ROSE DUKES, BARBARA J. BOLTIN, OLGA KIMBALL
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Taking spiritual flight
KIM SHIPPEY, SENIOR WRITER
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ITEMS OF INTEREST
with contributions from Jennifer Becknell, Gordon Lubold, Canon Robert Williams
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TAKING OUR WORLD INTO THE ARK
BY LUCIE LEHMANN-BARCLAY
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FALCONS THAT 'EMBRACE THE WORLD'
BY MARY TRAMMELL
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COMMON BIRD SPECIES IN DRAMATIC DECLINE
BY MARY CLAYTON
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'PUT FACE CLOSE'
BY BOB CLARK
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BACK TO CHASING BALLS
Abe McLaughlin
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CAMP E-PI-PHA-NY
BY J. TODD HERZER
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Know it even more
BY JUDITH HARDY OLSON
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poetry landscape
with contributions from Dee Miller, Wil Meacham, Gwenn Gurnack, Maureen Blake
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SWIMMING FOR OTHERS' HEALTH AND WELFARE
BY DAVID OLSON
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SAY GOODBYE TO ALLERGIES
BY GWEN BEACHAM
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Sign Language
JEFFREY HILDNER
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SPIRITUAL ANSWERS TO THE STRESS OF WAR
JANET HORTON
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Far from home, but never far from God
Cassidy, Shea, Annabel Engledow, Shirley-Ann Morris
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Don't just put up with it!
BY IAN HOBBS
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I REJOICE, FOR THIS DAY IS GOD'S
JUDY OLSON
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THE COLONEL AND THE BIBLE
WALT RODGERS
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WHAT'S THE BUZZ? RESPONDING TO GOSSIP WITH PRAYER
SANDRA SCOTT
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'BY LABOR DAY, I WAS HIKING'
KATHRYN A. KNOX
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NO MORE FEAR OF HEIGHTS
MARILYN LOGAN PROCTOR
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A QUICK HEALING
ROBERT STORM