Does God Belong in the Workplace?
December 27, 2007 by Kristen King
Filed under Business
The lively discussion sparked by Kelly’s post about God and taxes at Taxgirl got me thinking more about a topic that’s been on my mind lately:
What place does religion have in the workplace?
Personally, I think there’s a strong argument for religious morals and values in business dealings. The Bible contains straightforward advice on contracts, dealing with employees, running a business from your home, all kinds of stuff. (And no, I’m not making this up!) It also teaches timeless principles like honesty, integrity, a good work ethic, and setting good priorities. But how overt should your religious beliefs be at work?
I recently stumbled across a small business website that had a scrolling Bible quote across the bottom and lots of religious references throughout the owner’s biography, as well as a healthy dose of personal information (kids, husband, blah blah blah) that struck me as being way too over the top.
Maybe I’m just biased against scrolling anything (and don’t even think about a dancing Jesus gif, people), but it just felt unprofessional. So how much is too much? When and where is it appropriate? And what’s over the line?
What do you think?
Contents © Copyright 2007 Kristen King
(photo via SXC.hu)
Tags: women and business, woman, religion, professionalism, god, god in the workplace
Good post, Kristen, with lots to think about. I agree with what you’ve said. God has a place in the marketplace, but you can overdo and turn people away. The book of Proverbs has much good advice for simply living life.
G-d is everywhere… the more i achieve/do ,the more I realize it’s all His ultimately. The key whether in the workplace or lifeplace for that matter.. is appropriateness so people can open up to it rather than turn away
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