Recently, the leadership of my church announced that it is going to form a new church on the other side of town designed to appeal to the 21-40 age group. It is a noble goal, as this age cohort is far less likely to attend church than previous generations. I am 29 years old--planted squarely in the middle of this age group--and have had nearly a decade of dealing with my fellow Gen X and Y'rs. A church seeking to bring members of this generation to Jesus has to understand the attributes and desires of the group and deal intelligently with these traits.
Two attributes and two desires are greatly influenced by the pervasive influences of this age. The attributes are consumerism and confusion about truth. The deisres are a desire for commmunity and a desire for control. Some aspects of these attributes, concerns, and desires of the group are good, but often are sought improperly and in destructive ways. Others are problematic to the core from a Christian perspective. The negative aspects of these attributes and desires are a result of this generation's relentless pursuit of self-gratification.
Not every person in the generation will have all the same attributes, but I think that each attribute is applicable to a large number of people and it would be a very rare person indeed who is not effected by one of these for things. This article discusses each of these attributes and the challenges they pose to a church that seeks to have its members be imitators of Christ. This will be followed by an in-depth treatment of the cult of self-gratification. Subsequent articles will contain proposals and ideas regarding how we can counteract the negative aspects of these influences, both in our personal lives, in our communities, and the culture at large.
Consumerism
Personal autonomy is the demand of almost all Gen Y'rs. In this, it is unlikely that they are much different from many previous generations, but this demand has been directed more towards the satisfaction of personal desires by the fact that we life in a consumer society. Day after day, advertisements in all forms of media and the culture at large equate personal happiness with pleasure, which is obtained by purchasing certain items, engaging in certain actions, or experiencing certain things. And the advertisements do not try to convince the person to purchase them through reason and argument--the argument is usually not that the product is of the finest quality. Instead, the advertiser often appeals to the person's desires by using images and peer pressure.
These constant messages have multiple results. First, the listener becomes accustomed to a mode of thinking whereby he or she is the ultimate arbiter of truth. Who has the best cola? Well, I'll taste and decide for myself. Additionally, the criteria of whether something is valuable is not whether something is true or achieves excellence, but whether it brings pleasure or happiness. McDonalds doesn't say they have the best burgers, they just show people eating the food with a smile on their face and the caption "I'm lovin' it." It is also worth noting that modern advertising relies on images and evoking emotion rather than convincing a person via evidence that this product is the best. In making decisions, the listener is encouraged to make decisions on the basis of desire and emotion, often to the exclusion or limitation of reason. Finally, the listener is told that their status in society and among their peers will improve if they choose this product. In other words, an appeal to vanity is made. This can been seen in the facts that in advertisements it is almost always beautiful people and celebrities that are utilized, and that so many advertisers attempt to show that their wares are "cutting edge" and "trendy." The result is that people are trained to assume the utilitarian presumption that the maximization of happiness is the highest goal of life and society, but without the presumption that reason is the means by which to make the determination. The carnal desires are elevated, while reason is diminished and spirituality ignored.
Uncertainty About Truth
Many members of Generation Y are divided into two camps. In the first camp are those people who care whether things are true and may even consider it more important than personal pleasure. This does not mean that they necessarily believe that there is a God, or an objective moral law, or that there is a specific purpose to life. But they are willing to think about such matters and would concede that they are important. The second camp could care less about the truth, and is more than happy to use any means that will maximize happiness. Members of both camps are often cynical about the existence of truth and are quick to reject authority.
Among many who think truth is important, and especially among those who do not, there is a cynicism regarding whether truth exists. There are multiple reasons for this. As more people enter higher education, they come under the influence of a relativism in education that too often focuses more on debunking arguments through ad hominem attacks and claiming that all our intellectual predecessors were biased or simply trying to exercise power. Examining an argument on its merits is too often neglected. And while there are signs that the influence of relativism is lessening, its effects can still be seen in segments of society that teach that true tolerance is not giving in to the bigoted viewpoint that "if X is true, then not X is false." Evangelicalism deserves some blame for this state of affairs, having neglected the life of the mind, often despising reason, and failing to engage the world outside the church with a Christian worldview and ethic that encompasses all of life. As evangelical scholar Mark Noll puts it, it is a scandal, and one the church must work to remedy.
The result of all of this is that a cynical generation has emerged. Members of this generation who sense that the promises of the advertisers to bring happiness are bankrupt, are now wary of other promises to bring happiness. And those who continue to satisfy their needs chiefly through consumer culture generally do not believe or care that there may be a higher calling in life. The generation that has heard so many contrary voices of authority more concerned with publishing a novel paper than what is true or false (see academics) or winning an argument rather than discovering truth (see politicians) now distrusts authority. A world that says personal pleasure equals happiness and is the highest purpose in life, and that this is achieved through hedonism, cannot even deliver "the goods" (pleasure and temporary happiness) of this diminished goal through consumer culture. Thus it is no surprise that many do not believe that they have been designed with a purpose. As a result, it is very common for members of this generation to drift through life with an undefined life purpose. Too many drift through life, just trying to make the best of it and adopt a soft nihilism that creates low expectations and a life of limted joy.
Desire for Community
Generation Y'rs crave community. The lack of caring communities and meaningful interaction between friends has created a huge unmet need among today's young adults. There are multiple causes for this situation. First, families are far more likely to fragment. Everyone knows about the 50% divorce rate in our society. Another cause is the fact that young adults often leave home to go to school and try to "make it on their own" which takes them away from family and friends into new cities where they know few if any people. Even families that do not divorce increasingly separate to different parts of the country, and are only see each other on holidays. When Gen Y'rs get a job, it will often be for only a few years before they move to another job, in perhaps another city, thus even the work community is increasingly transitory. Our communities are filled with young adults who are lonely and searching for meaningful interation. A church potluck is not going to meet this need, nor are the handshakes and salutations that occur in the 5 to 10 minutes after a sunday worship service.
Another desire for community takes a different form. In addition to interaction, Gen Y'rs want to be part of communities where their talents are appreciated and valaued. As C.S. Lewis pointed out, a common interest is often the fertile ground in which friendship grows. To the extent that a young adult cannot find others in a community who share his or her interests, that person is not likely to have many friends. A person who cannot find friends within a community is going to feel isolated and not appreciated. Talent truly is on loan from God, but sadly our churches are too often places where the various talents of its members are squandered. If you can teach the Bible, or sing well, you're in luck. But God forbid if your talent is in painting, scientific inquiry, or a multitude of other areas of expertise or creativity.
Teaching our young how to use their talents for the glory of God is key if we hope to live in churches that bring the Gospel message of redemption to bear on all areas of our lives. As part of that message, however, we must also teach that the use of talent for God is done as an act of service. Too often, we are only willing to serve in ways that suit ourselves. After all, most of the "serious" members of a congregation can give a long outline of the deficiencies of our leaders in the clergy. We need to be willing to serve when asked, and perhaps even in ways that may not feed our egos or be totally within our control. We need to live that lesson out, and teach it to others.
Desire for Control
Generation Y--perhaps like most young adults in most generations--has an overwhelming desire to be in control of their own lives and tends to distrust authority. This does not mean that all members of this generation have purely selfish desires. Some may give their lives to causes outside themselves, but any such decision will be made by that person. We tend to be the captains of our own ships, with the possible exception of those who have unmet needs for community and may subbordinate their autonomy to meet that felt need.
As mentioned earlier, the consumer culture we live in creates habits of mind where we look to ourselves alone in making decisions. We consider satisfaction of our desire for pleasure as the key criteria in making decisions, and choose our options. We are told to seek out that which is trendy and stylish (two things that are in constant flux, unlike the objective moral truth of Jesus) as a means of setting ourselves apart. We are told to be one of the select few worthy of being considered better than those around us by buying a certain product--just like the other 10 million people who have seen the commercial.
And don't think about questioning this way of life for a second. If you do, that means that you are subjugating your freedom and not expressing your individuality. After all, what could be more freeing than spending all our time acquiring possessions, and more individualistic than joining the "hardy few" in our culture who are look to self-gratification as the ultimate purpose in life. As a church, we must show that it is in following Christ that we gain control of our lives. There is a reason Christ told us we cannot serve both God and money. Obviously, the main reason is because it is so easy for us to seek to gratify ourselves with false idols. But it is also because when we follow after the god "mammon" we end up in serving a God who tyrannizes us into a slavery where we seek pleasures and a purpose that false idol cannot provide; things that in the end dominate us. The question is whether we seek a life where our appetites dominate us, or instead choose to serve Jesus Christ, who transforms us into the people God designed us to be, and allows us the freedom that comes with contentment and being loved. For it is God who is the creator and ruler of the created order, and it is His command that we exercise dominion over all creation by loving and serving Him and one another. This is a vital lesson for our churches to teach, and one for many in my generation (including myself) to learn.
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Thank you for reading this far. The next article in the Rich Young Rulers series will be an analysis of the "cult of self-gratification" that my generation and the culture at large has embraced. God Bless.
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