I enjoy Facebook. I have reconnected with a lot of friends from many phases of my life, and it's neat to see what they're doing (and thinking and talking about) now, even if I don't necessarily communicate with them often. I enjoy the inside jokes, the sense of camaraderie (e.g. You know you are an IHOPer if…), and just generally having fun with friends in a relaxed online environment.

However, Facebook is still a product of our culture. And there are some aspects of our culture that are really sick. [unhealthy; ill; diseased; broken] One of these things is a prideful fascination with how we "rate" as people. I received the following message the other day (I've replaced the name of my actual friend with a pseudonym):

---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: Compare People
Date: Sep 16, 2007 9:37 AM
Subject: You've been rated

Joe Facebook sent you this message: I've been rating your intellect, wit, drive, sense of humor, and other attributes. See where you stand, and rate me too with Compare People.

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This email was sent on behalf of Joe Facebook while using Compare People.
To learn more or to stop receiving these emails, click here.

Here is my response:

1. How important are my "intellect, wit, drive, sense of humor, and other attributes?" Do they determine my value as a person? Do they make me more lovable? Will I be "last picked for the team" if I score low?
   
   If none of the above, then why should I care? If Joe Facebook says that I'm really smart, then should I be proud of myself? If he says that I'm dumb, should I be upset? Neither response is useful. In fact, virtually every thought that I have of how I "rate" or "compare" or "stack up" against other people is a fundamentally prideful thought that either serves to increase my arrogance or create self-hatred in me.
   
   
2. Why should I care what Joe Facebook thinks of me? Is Joe Facebook omniscient? Does he know me inside and out and understand me completely?
   
   Of course not. But wait, says the "Compare People" Application-from-Hell, if enough people all say the same thing about me, then it must be true! Right? If 15 of my friends all say that I'm smart, then I really must be smart. Right?
   
   Except that in practice, all the comments that I remember most about myself are the negatives. All the people who complimented my singing voice over the years paled in comparison to the one overheard comment by a person that I didn't even know who said I "sounded like a cow."
   
   Judging myself on the basis of what the crowd thinks about me is even worse than judging myself on the basis of what some individual thinks about me. It simply pushes me into the realm of image management – trying to make sure everybody else knows how "intellectual, witty, driven and humorous" I am. It is an invitation to wear a mask, to project an image, to be anxious over a thousand things I can't control.
   
   
3. If I rate higher in some attribute than all my friends, does that mean that I am truly superlative in that area? If I am the funniest person in my circle of friends, then should I be a stand-up comedian and start making movies?
   
   Maybe. But most likely not. The standard of comparison of the people who happen to be around me is a fundamentally unreliable one.
   
   And it's worse than that. The fact of the matter is that the entire human race is the wrong circle for me to compare myself with. If I base my perception of whether or not I am a holy person on any other human being I meet (with the exception of One who lived in Judea 2000 years ago), I will come to a false conclusion. The entire human race is a false measuring stick.
   

I'm not joking or using hyperbole when I say that "Compare People" is an application from Hell. That is quite literally where the idea for comparing ourselves with other human beings comes from. Here's what the Bible has to say about "Compare People":

2 Corinthians 10:12
12 For we dare not class ourselves or compare ourselves with those who commend themselves. But they, measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

1 Corinthians 4:3-5
3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. 4 For I know of nothing against myself, yet I am not justified by this; but He who judges me is the Lord. 5 Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darkness and reveal the counsels of the hearts. Then each one's praise will come from God.

Jeremiah 9:23-24
23 Thus says the LORD:
"Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the LORD, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight," says the LORD.