Summarizing the Conclusions of the Faith@Work Consultation

Over the past month at the Evangelical Portal at Patheos we have been discussing the challenges and joys of being a Christian in the secular workplace.  It is ironic that Protestants, who began their tradition by affirming the priesthood of all believers and the sanctity of work and family life, should have fallen into the trap of viewing only “ministry” work as a religious vocation.  Most jobs are ministry insofar as they serve the needs of others and serve for the recreation of the fallen world, and most jobs can become ministry insofar as they are done for the glory of God, in the presence of God, and in the hope of giving witness to God before others.  And sometimes, as this article explains, it is a question not so much of the end product of your work but of the people you meet and the conversations you have along the way.

We have reached the end of the Faith@Work Consultation and we’ve seen some excellent articles and conversation.  (I will be adding to the conversation tomorrow as well.)  I am summarizing the findings of the consultation, first, in this piece.  Please drop by, read the summary and leave a comment!

Also, please note that one of the final pieces we put up, as a part of the Consultation, is this searching perspective piece from a dear friend of mine on the fraught issue of ‘workplace evangelism.’