Teen Spirituality is DIY
Teenagers today are openly spiritual and insist on defining their spirituality in their own way, not afraid to reveal or structure their own beliefs. They appreciate the uniqueness of their peers and thrive in a less judgmental, more accepting arena than previous generations. Flourishing individuality and tolerance among teens has sparked new spiritual tendencies among the young, and they are adapting religion to their own needs and lifestyles.
An article in the May 8, 2000, issue of Newsweek profiling the work of Rob Rienow, a youth pastor at an inner-city church, sheds light on this surprisingly freeform religiosity. Rienow, who has been working with teenagers for several years, asked a group of kids from troubled homes, "Who do you think God is?" One teenager thought God was like his grandfather: "He's there, but I never see him." Another expressed a harsher view, describing God as "an evil being who wants to punish me all the time." More opinions followed until the last teen in the group aptly summed up the varied responses; "I think you're all right, because that's what you really believe." In other words, Rienow says, "God is whatever works for you." All of the kids agreed, their revolutionary idea backed up by their Youth Pastor.
God is whatever works for you. Indifferent to the literalist and fear-based doctrine of their parents' church, kids are going beyond personal interpretation. They are creating their own Personal Jesus.
Today's teenagers don't want to be told how to worship, but instead want to customize spiritual practices to enhance their own beliefs and personalities. Organized religion falls by the wayside as kids reach out for a pure spiritual link in their lives, grasping for the ethereal instead of the traditional. How they go about incorporating God into their lives may vary drastically, from meditation to rock climbing to youth groups.
The issues that young people have always dealt with still prevail—insecurity, relationships, personal development, family, school—yet the contexts have changed. Kids today deal with non-traditional, often unstable families, cross-cultural influences, a wealth of information (perhaps too much) and an enormous sense of possibility, all of which effect their perception of age-old questions like "Who is God." Whatever their circumstances, though, there seems to be a backlash against the extremes of rule-oriented church-going and cynical atheism, in favor of a more tolerant, more eclectic spiritual Third Way.