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LauraGrace Orner
Dr. Kendra Parker
English 113: Feminist Perspectives
December 10, 2016
Cultural Snapshots: Hope College Instagram Posts and Their Effect on Campus Christian Culture
The typical Hope College student is a Christian millennial who enjoys hammocking in
the Pine Grove, wearing Patagonia sling bags, making late night donut runs to Good Time
Donuts, and posting these activities onto their Instagram account. However, these students
Instagram accounts are more than a superficial display of experiences, but are also an important
platform for theological, social, and civic engagement- through the posting of pictures of
important campus and social events, chapel services, and their devotionals. The Instagram posts
made by current Hope College students allow viewers to better understand the changing culture
of Christianity both on Hopes campus and in mainstream society. Per these posts, todays young
adult Christians wish to modernize the Reform Church in Americas exclusive policies and
culture in regards to technology use, sexuality, and gender norms.
Using gender, cultural, and theological approaches, I will identify the ways in which the
Instagram posts made by students at Hope College reveal changing Christian culture among
young people. I argue that by posting pictures to their Instagram accounts students are
participating in a movement among millennial Christians to reform the Reformed Church in
America in regards to its stance on the use of technology, as well as the churchs theological
interpretation of human sexuality and gender. The Reformed Church in Americas stances on
these three issues are central to millennial Christians mass exodus from todays churches;
millennial Christians are looking for a more welcoming and inclusive spiritual environment. It is

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my belief that the origin of this misunderstanding and exodus are a result of the socio cultural
and theological divide between Christians of the millennial generation and those of older
generations. I believe that if the older generations, the creators of exclusive church policies, are
willing to work toward inclusivity and reach out to, welcome, and empower young adult
Christians, they will see a return to church by the millennial generation.
In discussions of millennials in the Church, one controversial issue is the movement of
millennial Christians away from conservative Christian values, which is disturbing to those of
older generations who have long been stuck in the rut of traditional interpretations of theology.
Some Christians believe that the churches of today are becoming too liberal in their attempt to
pander to the millennial generation. Popular theologian, John Wesley Reid, makes the argument
that millennial Christians, in the liberalization of their theological interpretation, are throwing
away theology all together. He notes the following in regards to Christian millennials stance on
homosexuality:
when theology is neglected Christian millennials succumb to weak cultural ideas and
defective scriptural interpretation such as Jesus just said to love people, so why should
we be opposed to gay marriage? when the Bible actually tells Christians to judge
each other (Matthew 7:24, I Corinthians 5:9-13). A good theology will inform the
individual that not only are they wrong in their sin, but that Jesus wants so much more for
them; more joy, purity, and intimacy with Him.
This outlook is to say that the only way for millennials to be Christians is to reject their weak
cultural [liberal] ideas and interpretations of scripture, to become just as- if not moreconservative in their scriptural interpretation than the generations before them. However, in
contrast, many churches believe that they must follow in the millennial Christians footsteps and

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expand their interpretation of scripture. In his book, Jesus Was a Liberal: Reclaiming
Christianity for All, Scotty McClean explains the importance of the liberalization of churches. In
this book, McClean advocates for churches to turn away from religious dogma and instead focus
on the humanity behind Christs teachings- encouraging churches to be inclusive to those from
all experiences. In my own experience, I have found that millennial Christians are looking for a
church that is welcoming and inclusive, a theme that is echoed in the devotional and spiritual
posts on Hope College students Instagram accounts.
The unfounded assumptions made about the Hope College students posting the
devotional pictures to Instagram suggest an underlying prejudice against millennial Christians by
older generations. Students believe that they are sharing their faith through the posts they make
to their social media, specifically Instagram, accounts. Viewers, particularly of older generations,
tend to assume that the students posting the images are surface level Christians, lacking depth,
or actual devotion in their spiritual life, but instead are only after the Christian aesthetic (Challa).
The Reformed Church in America acknowledges this socio-cultural divide in the church. And
because of this, the church is attempting to reach out to and connect with young adult Christians
on their own turf- social media. In the RCAs Social Media Discussion Covenant, the church
outlines responsible and Christ-centered use of social media outlets. In this covenant, the church
emphasizes overlooking assumptions, noting,
I will not exaggerate others beliefs nor make unfounded prejudicial assumptions based
on labels, categories, or stereotypes. I will always extend the benefit of the doubt.
Ephesians 4:29- Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only
what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those
who listen. (Social Media Discussion Covenant)

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This outlook contrasts with a recent study on religion and media, in which it was found that
Christians of older generations found the internet and social media- and their users- to be messy
and disorganized, too messy and disorganized to be future leaders of the church (Cho). But, by
reaching out to social media users, the church is breaking out of these unfounded assumptions
regarding millennial Christians social media use. Which will, in turn, encourage a return of these
young people to the church, for they will feel better understood, and therefore more welcome
within the church community.
However, with the return of this younger population comes a push for change in historic
church traditions. While the Reformed Church in America may be pursuing young people online
and bringing them into the church, the church is making little to no effort to adapt to or
accommodate Christian millennials changing theological perspective. The church, and in turn
Hope College, subscribe to the ideals of conservative Christianity in their interpretation of
biblical text, particularly in regards to human sexuality. Hope College students Instagram posts
exemplify the changing- more accepting- mindset among millennial Christians around human
sexuality in the church. This inclusive mindset contradicts the current stance taken by both Hope
College and the Reformed Church in America; this stance being that homosexuality is a sin,
therefore marriage is reserved to be between a (cisgender) man and (cisgender) woman. This
changing mindset among millennial Christians was most evident in the Spring of 2016 when
there was administrative unrest at Hope College. There was much speculation on Hope Colleges
campus in regards to current President John C. Knapps job security after he began to implement
a plan to create a more inclusive campus environment for those in the LGBTQ+ community
(Scott). Current students took to Instagram to show their support for President Knapp and his
policies using the hashtag Students4Knapp (Scott). Figure 1 is one such post, made by a

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member of the Hope College class of 2019, is a photo of a silent protest in support of President
Knapp during the unrest and is captioned with:
Seek Justice, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly with your God (Micah 6:8) // I believe every
being despite belief, religion, faith, life, experience, race, gender, sexuality can promise
that they will be justice seekers, become merciful and accept mercy and create in
themselves a humble heart. I am working on these three constantly and Christ gives me
the strength to follow through. #Students4Knapp
These posts of support are evidence of a movement by millennials away from the outdated and
exclusive policies held by both Hope College and the
Reformed Church in America- both of which are run
overwhelmingly by Christians of older generations. If the
RCA wishes to grow the population of young people in its
churches, it must first grow and expand its narrow theological
Figure 1

perspective of human sexuality and marriage.

The Reformed Church in America must also develop new ideas in regards to its

interpretation of gender roles. For, the Instagram posts made by Hope College students reveal
changing gender roles among millennial Christians in the church, which underscores current
beliefs that support male-dominated theology. If one searches Instagrams posts by geographical
location and selects all posts made at Hope College Dimnent Chapel, one will find one-hundred
and eighteen posts made within the past fifteen weeks, the weeks since the beginning of the Fall
2016 semester. Out of this one-hundred and eighteen posts- which is the number of posts
remaining once all posts are screened to ensure that current Hope College students are posting
them- over eighty-percent are found to have been posted by young adult women. Hope College

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has around a sixty-forty ratio of women to men on campus, but this is not significant enough to
justify the overwhelming majority of women in the participation spiritual Instagram posting.
According to this result, millennial Christian women are far more participatory in the church
than their male counterparts. This result is affirmed in a 2016 study performed by the Pew
Research Center which found that women are generally more religious than men, particularly
among Christians (Mitchell). The study goes on to say that
in the United States women are more likely than men to say religion is very important
in their lives (60% vs. 47%), according to a 2014 Pew Research Center survey. American
women also are more likely than American men to say they pray daily (64% vs. 47%) and
attend religious services at least once a week (40% vs. 32%). According to media
accounts, women so outnumber men in the pews of many U.S. churches that some clergy
have changed decor, music and worship styles to try to bring more men into their
congregations. (Mitchell)
And yet, the Reformed Church in America continues to hold antiquated beliefs about womens
role in the church; the Reformed Church believes in complementarism- the belief that men were
made serve God, while women were made to display God. In this church, women can become
ordained clergy, however, per the philosophy of complementarism it is not their genders place to
serve in the church. From the frequency of their spiritual Instagram posts, it is clear the
millennial Christian woman do not subscribe to this belief. These young women are participatory
in sharing their faith with both their peers and the public at large. If the Reform Church in
America wishes to not only draw millennial Christians back to the church, but for them to inherit
the church, the Reform Church in America must create policy that is conducive to all genders
participating within the church.

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The debate over millennials in the Church has been going on since this generation was
old enough to leave the church. It has evolved from a simple exodus to a cultural and theological
movement among churches. The use of social media, specifically Instagram, has only heightened
individuals awareness of the issue. However, I believe that the first step to solving a problem is
identifying it; and while, I feel there have yet to be great strides to creating an inclusive and
millennial friendly church, I believe that churches are on the right track.

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Works Cited
Challa, Janaki. "What Exactly Is Hipster Christianity?" National Public Radio, 23 Dec. 2013.
Web. 10 Dec. 2016.
Cho, Kyong. "New Media and Religion: Observations on Research." Communication Research
Trends 30.1 (2011): 4+. Expanded Academic ASAP. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.
Class of 2019, Student. Visual 1. 2016. Instagram, Holland, Michigan.
Honey, Charles. "Survey Shows CRC Older, Less Devotional." Christian Reformed Church. 10
June 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.
McLennan, Scotty. Jesus Was a Liberal: Reclaiming Christianity for All. New York: Palgrave
Macmillan, 2009. Print.
Mitchell, Travis. "The Gender Gap in Religion Around the World." Pew Research Center's
Religion & Public Life Project. Pew Research Center, 22 Mar. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.
Moritz, Joshua M. "Beyond Strategy, Towards the Kingdom of God: The Post-Critical
Reconstructionist Mission of the Emerging Church." Dialog: A Journal of Theology 47.1
(2008): 27-36. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.
Reid, John Wesley. "5 Trends Christians Millennials MUST STOP Doing." JohnReidBlogs. 03
May 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.
Scott, Monica. "Hope College Students Fear President's Dismissal, Show Support at Protest."
MLive.com. 15 Apr. 2016. Web. 10 Dec. 2016.

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"Social Media Discussion Covenant." Social Media Discussion Covenant. Reformed Church in
America, Web. 10 Dec. 2016.