Chapter 5: Priests of Creation, Mediators of Order: Taking God to Work

Labor is an inherent part of what we do and sometimes who we are; it can affect our lives both at work and at home. Unfortunately, much of how we understand work “is a modern invention, a product of industrialization and governed by the laws of economic rationality” (Casey, 1995, p. 28).

These “laws” ensure that labor is reorganized in the interests of efficiency and profits. Workplaces, and the individuals within them, have come to be seen as machines—tools created to achieve instrumental ends (Morgan, 1997). Perhaps, it is not surprising therefore, that interest in spirituality in the workplace (hereafter SWP) has developed not only as a bulwark against such thinking (Benefiel, Fry, … Geigle, 2014) but also to meet existential needs for greater connectedness and meaning through work (Ashar … Lane–Mahar, 2004). As Mitroff (2003) has noted, “whether we like it or not, work is inextricably intertwined with our perpetual search for meaning. Work is an integral part of our spirituality, our search for ultimate meaning” (p. 375).