An Inconvenient Spirituality

This is a great article on Gen Y and some of their thoughts on religion. I found the article at mondaymorninginsight.com.

We had several surprises during a recent interview at Starbucks with “Katie” and “Josh” (twentysomething siblings). During an unplanned discussion comparing Gen X with the burgeoning popularity of Gen Y, for example, Katie described her cohort in these stark words: “we’re not likeable.” I probably surprised her with my comment that a lot of Boomers I’ve met (not all) would agree with that assessment, and that we are in general planning on “skipping” X’ers from here on out to concentrate on Millennials. Our conversation careened into another subject from there. Katie described three spiritual subcultures she has observed in age group (her own) that has witnessed the “dark side of church”...

1. Hokey Christians: These believers are heavily invested in the pop culture side of conservative evangelicalism and can be spotted easily at the mall wearing “Jesus” T-shirts featuring logos borrowed from the Sopranos or Reece’s Pieces. For Katie and Josh, this subculture regards Jesus as a “homeboy,” but lives the faith out cartoon-style, heavy on affectations, lite on the substance.

2. Bitter Christians: Harmed by the misuse of authority in local congregations, these disciples have just seen too much. Pain and disappointment have led them to declare a sort of spiritual free agency. Still devoted to Jesus, they recoil at the way the Church becomes a vehicle for the exercise of personal power. To this person, the idea of a purpose-driven life seems like just another infomercial.

3. Non-Christians: These young adults will “consider themselves spiritual,” but have minimal interest in what evangelicals have to offer. Their preference for the open architecture of compound spiritualities (those formed by personal choice from a menu of options) seems to immunize them against our standard Sunday morning offering. Katie noted that, “you can’t reach them with anything like church.” In contrast, she recalled a backyard pig roast (which Jan and I attended) that used the simple grace of hospitality to pack the place with her unbelieving neighbors.

These subcultures are fairly well-known to all of us. But then came another surprise: Josh commented that his friends may live in all three subcultural envelopes at different times (or perhaps simultaneously), moving through them like phases. They start with that “church camp feeling,” but drift toward the unbelieving end, and then may drift back again.

I concluded from Josh’s observation that at least some young adult spirituality is less of a static state of mind and more of a more of a floating experience of faith.

Some of this trait is doubtless a product of the pre-adult life phase, but that doesn’t change the responsibilities of Christian leaders to connect with them. The three subcultures Katie and Josh described are not destinations; they are pit stops which may be visited and revisited over and over. This kind of spiritual journey does not fit neatly into our programs and events.

It is inconvenient. And the temptation for leaders will be to focus mainly on those whose faith (or lack of it) fits more efficiently into our ministry molds, or to use power on the inconvenient until they assume the shape that we desire.

Katie asked the defining question in this regard: “We are kind of like a cross between doubting Thomas and Judas. We may betray you…We are not sure we believe…We are not sure we believe you…but will you accept us?”

About the Author: Earl Creps has spent several years visiting congregations that are attempting to engage emerging culture. He directs doctoral studies for the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary in Springfield, Missouri (http://www.agts.edu). Earl and his wife Janet have pastored three churches, one Boomer, one Builder, and one GenX. He speaks, trains, and consults with ministries around the country. Earl’s book, Off-Road Disciplines: Spiritual Adventures of Missional Leaders, was published by Jossey-Bass/Leadership Network in 2006. Connect with Earl at http://www.earlcreps.com .