On Monday July 30, 2007 the USA TODAY ran an article titled “FAITH AT THE OFFICE. WHY NOT?” It was wonderfully written by a pastor in Northern Virginia and the contention was that faith should not be exculded, but should have a place at the table. It is interesting that in the 90s the hottest word in the work place became “spirituality” according to a number of cultural gurus. Could it be because faith as been locked away in the storage closet too long? Or relegated to the clean up crew after hours?
Let’s face it, there is a hole in every human heart that cannot be filled by anything, or anyone, outside of the Creator…not even work.
So, since this has been a passion of mine for some time, I submitted a response to the paper. Whether it will be used or not, only time will tell. But I least I want to share it with you and hear your feedback.
Faith@Work
It is ironic that we have tended to make faith and work
mutually exclusive in our nation. Especially when our forefathers did not. They did not primarily refer to what they did throughout the week as their work, job, career or profession…but as their vocation. It derived from the Latin word vocatio which referred to a “calling.†In their view there was a touch of the divine in the mundane of their labor.
And look at what they accomplished. An educational system second to none, the esteeming of higher learning, and the establishment of a system of government that despite its imperfections has stood the test of time. The free market square where freedom of speech, privacy, private ownership, treasured immigration and the freedom to fulfill one’s dream was guaranteed by the under girding of the freedom of religion that did not separate the secular from the sacred.
Thus it was that every state’s constitution refers to the hand of Providence that made the government and marketplace possible. And the first Supreme Court actually celebrated in worship and Communion. Worship services were held at times in the House of Representatives. And the Puritan settlers taught there was a General Call to a personal relationship to God, with a Particular Call of place and position according to God-given talents, gifts, skills and character.
So why not allow for a place for faith respectfully and gracefully lived out whether in the Boardroom, the office break room, at the construction site or in the hospital halls? It gave us a pretty good beginning…might it not also grant us a strong future?