Decent Work is a Spiritual Value

It hurts to be unemployed, underemployed or working at a job that offers few to no essential benefits like health and dental insurance, paid time off and an employer assisted retirement savings plan. I’ve seen too many people crushed by the fatigue of being unable to locate and obtain decent work, by that I mean one job that pays enough to pull their family out of the poverty level.

So in support of The Global Goals for Sustainable Development and the #prayerforeveryone campaign, I will speak to Global Goal #8 – decent work and economic growth. One of life’s callings is to help individuals transcend and “bear with” their current economic situation while working toward a better life.

For the past ten years I’ve offered vocational discernment to spiritual direction clients who long to live out their spiritual values in the workplace. This work is about listening to the deep longings of the heart and noticing where, in our daily tasks, we “come alive” and lose ourselves in our contribution to society.

I like to say I am working to change the world one heart at a time.

And while vocational discernment is essential and meaningful work, it remains on the micro level. We can change our hearts all we want but if on the macro level systems and structures continue to

• maximize profits instead of reinvesting in their companies and workers
• skirt their obligations to pay a decent living wage or offer reasonable benefits by only hiring part-time workers and
• Evade paying proper taxes that support government programs offering a social safety net, shoring up our fragile infrastructure and regulating industries that are a safety risk

then we haven’t made progress. We will have a lot of energized people seeking to live out their call but few avenues with which to do that.

It’s time we took our spiritual values to the streets to protect labor rights, promote government mandated benefits like paid time off, and demand equal pay for equal work.

Jesus once asked what kind of person would give his child a stone when the child asked for bread? The presumed answer is “a really bad one.” Yet many corporations worldwide offer stones on a regular basis when what people are begging for is bread.

Decent work is the bread we need.

Decent work is a spiritual value.

While I will never stop working with people to help them find their life’s calling, I will also never pretend that it is always, only up to them and God. There are forces at work in systems and structures that I believe the God of abundant life and love wants us to counter with political action.

Here is my #prayerforeveryone

Oh God, we pray for economic justice for all people worldwide who are unemployed, underemployed or working multiple jobs to sustain their families. May they be strengthened individually even while our communities work collaboratively to bring about this justice.  Amen.

For more information about the Prayer for Everyone campaign go to www.prayerforeveryone.org.

If you are interested in learning more about spiritual direction or entering spiritual direction with me, please contact me at teresa@teresablythe.net  or visit www.teresablythe.net.  Also visit my website for the Phoenix Center for Spiritual Direction.