Want to transform your workplace? Try the secret force of faith

Religion and politics, we are told, are the two subjects off-limits from general conversations—the kind of conversations often had in the workplace. In this thinking, since religious and political beliefs are deeply held, and since no two employees share the same views, to discuss them in any capacity will lead to rancor, division, and feuds. If we steer clear of these topics and don’t take sides, we will keep everyone happy — or at least we will keep them from quarreling.

Politics is a topic for another day. But Catholics cannot accept this facile argument that sinisterly marginalizes religion. By divine mandate, Catholics are to bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to wherever they are and to whatever they are doing. To not talk about religion is contrary to our baptismal vocation. We must find a way.

Of course, finding a way is extremely difficult in our secular society, where bringing the Gospel to the workplace or to other public spaces is fraught with dangers. Conditions for preaching were no better in Jesus’ day, which is why, when He sent out the apostles, He cautioned, “See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Matt 10:16).

If we are going to be effective in bringing Jesus Christ to others in our secular world and in our workplace, we must take our Lord’s advice. It will not help our cause to read Bible verses over the loudspeaker or mount religious posters in the elevator. When the front door is closed, the wise serpent glides toward the back.

The Gospel alone can be compelling, but it becomes transformative when potential converts see its adherents living the faith to the full. Actions speak louder than words, goes the old saying. Faith-filled actions—large or small, heroic or mundane—speak for the Word who became flesh and who longs to dwell in the heart of each person He created.

So how, exactly, do we do this in the workplace? The French philosopher Étienne Gilson explains that we must act as “Catholics who would make Catholicism so enter into their everyday lives and work that the unbelieving would come to wonder what secret force animated that work and that life, and that, having discovered it, they would say to themselves, on the contrary: he is a very good man, and now I know why: it is because he is a Catholic.”

The secret force of faith is not worn on one’s sleeve. It manifests itself in countless ways: by our demeanor, keeping a cheerful disposition and avoiding rash words or behaviors; by how we treat others, from shareholders to office cleaners; by how we speak, with sincerity and without gossip or swearing; by how we eat when at our desks or in the lunch room, with a pause to say grace and make the sign of the cross; by talking about faith with individuals and groups when opportunities arise, and they surely will.

Employees carefully watch their bosses’ behaviors. Catholic CEOs and business leaders can make a tremendous impact on their employees’ faith by living the Gospel—by being “innocent as doves” animated by the conviction that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. Not only will fidelity to the Gospel lead us to heaven, but it will also lead our employees and coworkers there too. And if they are on their way to heaven, surely they will contribute to fostering a healthier workplace in the here and now.

DAVID G. BONAGURA, JR. teaches at St. Joseph’s Seminary in Yonkers, N.Y. He is the author of Steadfast in Faith: Catholicism and the Challenges of Secularism and Staying with the Catholic Church: Trusting God’s Plan of Salvation.