Separation of church and work – oh, really?

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I just read an article titled “Their Faith Is Their Bottom Line” (Christie Smythe, The Indianapolis Star, 6 August 2005), which states: “A growing number of small-business owners and professionals are publicly combining faith and work.” The presupposition behind this statement is that faith and work are not already combined. That is, one’s work has nothing to do with one’s faith or worldview. (One’s worldview is built on one’s faith, that is the presuppositions that one accepts regarding truth and reality.)

Interestingly, Henry Ford stated just the opposite. On one occasion in the mid-1920s, when he was developing his famous assembly line, Ford was reported to have bemoaned that all he wanted to hire was a pair of hands. What he meant was that he couldn’t hire just a pair of hands, he had to hire the whole person. This meant that -- like it or not -- he hired the person’s worldview (i.e., values, principles, and perspective). Henry Ford knew that when he hired someone, he hired the entire person?everything that makes that person who he or she is.

I think if Henry were here today and read the article referred to above, he might be a little perplexed. He might ask, "What do you mean by 'combining' faith and work?" He would probably argue that they are already inseparable; hence, they cannot be combined. Most certainly he would concede that many do not live their faith, which suggests that many do not have the faith they profess. For reality is that we live and act based on what we really believe not necessarily what we say we believe.

How did we lose this simple lesson that Henry Ford learned long ago? In reality, there is no separation of faith and work. Our work is an expression of our faith -- who we are and what we believe. This is true of everyone -- Christians and non-Christians.

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For those of us who are seeking to share our faith with others, it is good for us not to hide our light under a bushel. Being open about our faith is good, and should be encouraged. If being more open and vocal about one’s faith is what is meant by “combining faith and work,” this is good. But we must be clear that work is the fruit of the spiritual reality within us. Just as an apple tree bears apples to reveal that it is an apple tree, so our work reveals the worldview and corresponding spiritual condition within each of us.

I don’t know Henry Ford’s spiritual condition, but I know he understood that he couldn’t hire just a pair of hands. He understood that work was the inseparable fruit of a person’s faith or worldview. He knew that when he hired a person, he hired the whole person and therefore he hired the person’s worldview.

, a management consulting firm specializing in helping business owners and management teams build world-class organizations based on the timeless universal principles of leadership and management taught in the Bible.

Since 1987, Dr. Chester has worked with dozens of companies in a wide variety of industries. His focus is to help clients build great organizations by understanding and implementing the key principles of enduring success?building equally yoked management teams, developing efficacious strategic plans, and executing with excellence.

In June 2005, Dr. Chester was awarded the Christian Leadership Award by Dallas Baptist University and the CEO Institute.

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To reach Gerald, e-mail him at [email protected].