Why Communities Are the New Obsession: Events, Trips, and Buzzwords Explained
What's the obsession with communities? With each scroll and click, we can't escape the posts, events, and invites to join. Communities have flooded our timelines with articles, trips, and dinners. As 'safe spaces' become not only a talking point but a requirement for people to thrive, it begs the question of why we're so community-obsessed.
2025 is the year of community. With the rise of community-based platforms, branding, and events, it's clear that this is more than just a trend but a societal shift. We're moving away from the typical influencer approach and toward one that caters more to communities. There's apparent demand, with brands like Refy, Ladies Who Launch, and To My Sisters doing it so well.
A demand that has always been at the heart of Vie. As Vie's founder and editor-in-chief, one of my goals was to build a community. I knew it was a necessity. Before Vie was, the community arm was always where my heart was.
This idea was solidified while I was at a brunch. I sat with educated, beautiful, ambitious women at a birthday brunch. Yet, the conversations felt ungodly and far from biblical principles. Conversations strayed from horoscopes to tantalizing sex. I knew I didn't want to be there anymore at that moment, but I did.
I wanted to be around like-minded women, eat good food, and laugh. However, I didn't want it to be to the detriment of my mind, spirit, or soul. At the time, nothing fit those criteria, and growing up and in my teens, even less so. I struggled to reconcile my love for Christ and my passion for lifestyle and fashion. It felt like Christians couldn't venture into those spaces.
While the secular world thrived in those spaces and controlled the narrative, I also knew women like me were in different fields, loved lifestyle, and adored Christ. I wanted to create a platform celebrating those women and connecting them. My desire wasn't just to make a digital magazine and media but to facilitate godly connections.
Why? Because I wanted to bring change to traditionally secular and even dark industries. However, real change requires you to have an impact. Creating impact can be challenging to achieve alone; that's where community comes into play.
As evidenced in scripture, when we gather and help each other build, we become a force to be reckoned with. In Genesis, we see a community gather to build the tower of Babbel (Genesis 11:1-9). They became unstoppable when unified, spoke one language, and had a common goal.
"If they have begun to do this as one people speaking the same language, then nothing they devise will be beyond them."
However, because their plans were evil, they had to be stopped. The Lord ensured they no longer spoke the same language to scatter them. Once their speech was no longer aligned, they couldn't build. This story parallels the day of Pentecost. Those in the upper room needed to receive the Holy Spirit to fulfill the great commission. The evidence is that they spoke one language. Community allows you to build.
Without community, we can be so limited in our ambitions because what you lack, another carries what you have another need. Together, we get to complete the vision.
It's essential to understand what community means: the people living in one particular area or people who are considered as a unitbecause of their common interests, social group, or nationality.
Another word for community is body, which we know the Bible speaks about. We are one body. A limb cannot achieve much, but a body can achieve so much in harmony and embracing uniqueness. Community is God's desire for us.
Community is more than us gathering together for a group chat and the occasional event. It's about building—not just things or projects. It builds us up. It strengthens us as individuals as we learn, connect, and bond. We get to pull from each other.
Returning to my original question: what's the obsession with communities? Loneliness is a real epidemic. Social media can momentarily deceive us into believing that our followers are our friends when, in reality, most people are struggling with loneliness now more than ever.
People want real connections, and fostering these types of connections requires authenticity. That's why we have 'Feminine in Faith,' our annual women's networking event, and our Vie Community. What was so special about the second iteration of 'Feminine in Faith' was how intimate it was. It was a room of 40 women from different walks of life, learning from other women who had been through various things.
There was truly something for everyone. I found myself 'mhmming and ahhing' to all the speakers. Though they had different lives, I could relate to them all. However, it wasn't just the speakers I learned from but all the incredible women who attended. They shared their stories and encouraged me through it all. That's the power of community—it empowers.
What made it so special was eating together. The Bible refers to it breaking bread together as a symbol of fellowship, closeness, and community. To experience that was amazing. By the end, we all felt like friends. We laughed together and dragged our feet when it came to going home.
Finding community leaves you feeling full and edified. The only time God says something is not good in creation is when Adam is alone. It wasn't the animals that would suit him, but someone, though different, Eve was precisely what he needed to commune.
Community is truly at the heart of the Lord. We see God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit commune together to make creation saying, 'let Us make man in Our image. (Genesis 1:26)" community has the power to create when there's unity. We get reveal God's facets when we come together and commune. Together we are the body of Christ. We commune with the Lord and each other.
Vie's focus is on sisterhood. Our community motto is building sisterhood so you don't have to build alone—because you were never meant to build alone. Communities may have started off as a trend for some, but we stand behind this as it's God's heart for us all.