Perhaps you've read the rash of articles this season trying to decipher whether Barack Obama is a certifiable geek. Apparently, geekism is related to techno-savvy and intelligence whereas nerdism and dorkitude relates more to social awkwardness and a fondness for Star Trek gang signs. This puts our President-elect in an awkward spot, since he seems to straddle these definitions.

But we Americans like our labels to be as accurate as possible, so a variety of journalists have fashioned a new word for Obama and perhaps others in his predicament: nerd-adjacent.

People who are not themselves fully steeped in nerd culture—but through partial traits and the proximity of friends find they are pretty darn close—can be classified as nerd-adjacent.

In case you’re reading this and worried whether you fall into one or more of these categories, here is a simple list of traits. (We could make this into one of those Seventeen magazine-style quizzes, where you give yourself a certain number of points for each trait, but ConversantLife is way classier than that.  Plus, you aren’t really that interested in a score—you just want to make sure you’re fairly normal. Also, please note that there will be a spiritual application at the end, so if you’re wondering why I’m not being profound or anything, just give me a second and I might get around to it).

All right, here goes my unscientific classification that comes from working with honors high school students for a very long time.

Geeks often lean toward these traits:

• A fascination with all things technological.
• A higher-than-average intelligence
• An interest in satire, fiction, and online journalism
• Finding personal enjoyment in being an expert in something—usually in the fields of science, medicine, or telecommunications
•    A fairly large bevy of friends (more commonly called a bevy, as opposed to a posse, or homeboys, or a crew)

Nerds, on the other hand, might also add these traits

• A self-awareness of his or her nerd qualities
• Taking enjoyment in those qualities to the point of flaunting them, or finding his identity in a nerd sub-culture.
• Adopting some of the stereotypes of this sub-culture, which, rather than listing them all here, can be found in Weird Al Yankovik’s ubiquitous musical manifesto “White and Nerdy."

Dorks push the barriers even more through these mutations:

• Social awkwardness
• Lack of awareness about this awkwardness
• A profound happiness that defies logic

So, do you feel better now that you know the difference? The fourth category, the one that journalists are calling nerd-adjacent, spares you and me from the pain of social awkwardness or rejection, but gives us all the benefits we might like, such as intelligence, or wit, or technical savvy.

All right, so if you’ve read this far, what does this have to do with faith? Here’s my biggest question for you. Are you a Christian—or merely Christ-adjacent?  I have classified myself as a Christian for most of my life, assuming that I have adopted all the traits of this sub-culture. But have I ever been guilty of the hyphen? Have I situated myself comfortably among the followers of Christ in order to reap the benefits but have been reluctant to go all in?

Let’s consider how the Bible defines its terms. If you took the previous test—well, sweet. But this one is a touch more important, so stay with me:

The Lukewarmers hold these traits:

• Disliking both the heat of the disciple and the chilly conclusions of the apostate
• Preferring the relative comfort of the middle ground

I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking. You're not cold, you're not hot—far better to be either cold or hot! (Revelation 3:15-16, The Message)

The Pious could be said to show:

• Fervency with regard to politics, morality, and social behavior
• Devotion to the appearance of goodness and character

But the Master said to him, "I know you Pharisees burnish the surface of your cups and plates so they sparkle in the sun, but I also know your insides are maggoty with greed and secret evil. Stupid Pharisees! Didn't the One who made the outside also make the inside? (Luke 11:38, The Message)

The Christ-adjacents demonstrate these characteristics:

• A proximity to other believers
• Enjoying trailing in the wake of “good things” such as comforting sermons, scripture-a-day flip calendars, and nighttime prayers

Don't look for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easygoing formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don't fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way to life—to God!—is vigorous and requires total attention. (Matthew 7:13-14, The Message)

Yes, we like our labels to be unambiguous, so there are a few that speak the truth rather plainly. Don’t add up your score and panic. Instead, use the label that can’t be hyphenated, prostituted, mangled, or distorted. Aspire to be called what Jesus Christ himself used for his closest followers: disciple.