Religion can't define me ... but Facebook can

Religion [1] can be so inflexible.

And no, I'm not alluding to remembering the Sabbath or the whole chastity thing.

The way society forces us to choose a one-word definition to characterize our faith often leaves many to use the terms Catholic or Methodist to encompass a far more intricate truth. Each of our belief systems is complicated beyond the scope of a simple denomination.

Enter Facebook ... duh.

We now have an unlimited amount of space, or at least all we can fit beside "Religious Views," to give the world a detailed history of our nuanced beliefs. I scanned my friends' answers to the loaded question.

"Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster [2]" gave me a good chuckle.

"I went to Catholic school for 12 years, so it's hard to say," hit a little close to home.

But joking aside, the words "Christ follower," "believer" and "my heart belongs to HIM alone" are far more telling than simply typing in Baptist or Mormon. It implies devotion in a way that a title cannot.

One of the responses I found was so honest that it speaks to a whole generation's stance on the idea of religion: "Cafeteria Catholic/Pick ‘n' Chooser." Another one, "currently building a new one," imparts a similar sentiment.

This generation of the faithful doesn't want the rigid constraints that don't allow room to breathe. They don't want to align themselves with a particular denomination when they disagree with half of the tenants.

A Pew Forum study [3] published in February pointed out that very fact. The group that has seen the largest increase in "members" is the unaffiliated. Much of that group is comprised of people who say religion is important to them-just not organized religion. And Bible churches, non-denominational and "mega-churches" (a la Willow Creek [4]) have capitalized on the younger generation's disenchantment with doctrine.

But if everyone really can pick and choose the attractive attributes from each faith to best fit his ideals or, worse, his personality, what does that leave us with? Congregants unwilling to challenge the status quo or question doctrine fleeing the church in search of a more appealing alternative? Churches left to those rigid in practice, loath to change?

If we only lean toward the faith of the feel-good, what does that really mean for our spiritual lives? Perhaps it's youthful rebellion or experimentation and not a generational characteristic. It's possible the "unaffiliated" will find a more established path.

Until then, we can peruse our friend lists to find interesting options.

And what does my Facebook profile say, you might ask? "Lutheranish." But that's a whole other story.