Religion in the Workplace – “Thoughts and Prayers”
Dear colleagues,
I would be interested in your thoughts on the event below, and the aftermath, as it relates to your experiences in the workplace. Please see polling questions after the summary. These events hit me hard last week and gave me reason for self-reflection. Forewarning, my polling questions may make you squirm a bit….
Last week during the NFL Monday night football game between Buffalo and Cincinnati, time seemed to stand still as a stunning and terrifying event occurred during the game. Damar Hamlin, a young special teams and defensive player for the Bills in his second year of professional football, collapsed after making a tackle and went into cardiac arrest. Medical personnel responded immediately by administering CPR. Hamlin’s teammates and coaches, as well as the players and coaches from the opposing team, were understandably shaken and gathered together to pray on the field as medical personnel continued treatment and ultimately transported him via ambulance to a hospital in Cincinnati. The game was cancelled, and social media exploded with well wishes and messages of “prayers” being lifted.
During a broadcast of ESPN’s “NFL Live” the next evening (when Hamlin was still in critical condition at the hospital), Dan Orlovsky (a former NFL quarterback who is now a commentator for ESPN) paused during the middle of the live program and prayed on-air for Hamlin. A link to the live footage showing his prayer is below.
I would imagine many of you reading this have been following the aftermath of Hamlin’s injury and we can now all breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Hamlin seems to be recovering well.
Polling Questions:
How did you react to the prayers taking place on the field and in the aftermath?
For me – it was uplifting to see that in a moment of potential tragedy, many individuals including those who likely were of different backgrounds, religious affiliations, political beliefs, etc., put their differences aside and came together with one common purpose of lifting prayers of healing. It’s disappointing to me that seemingly only in the midst of tragedy can our society come together like this.
Have you ever had a situation occur in the workplace that resulted in individual or group prayer for a fellow employee?
For me – I can only think of one time in my 20+ year corporate career when this occurred, and I was the one being prayed for. See further details on this after the next question.
Would you ever feel comfortable leading such a prayer? Or having another employee ask to pray for you?
For me – it is convicting to admit that I would be nervous about leading such a prayer in the workplace especially as I consider myself a man of faith, a Christian who aspires to lead his life and family and “personal life” in accordance with Biblical teachings.
That being said, I will share with you that one of the most impactful moments in my professional career, and personal life, occurred a few years ago. Our family was going through a very emotional time after a traumatic event. I probably should not have been in the office that day but had a meeting on the calendar I was scheduled to help co- facilitate with external attendees coming in from out of state. I felt obligated to be there. Prior to the meeting, I walked into the office of my co-facilitator (someone who I consider one of the most impactful mentors in my professional and personal life) and he immediately could tell I was in a bad state. Without hesitation, he told me to close the door and then asked if he could pray for me. I nearly broke…… battling back tears, I said “yes, please do” and he lifted up a prayer that was desperately needed and tremendously impactful. He then told me to go home to be with my family and that he would take care of the meeting.
Why do I offer up such a long and perhaps “too personal” post on Linked-In? Because if the events of last week should teach us anything, it is that life is too short and if you are moved by prayer….. then pray. If you prefer not to pray, or are not a person of faith, that choice should be respected in the workplace as well. While an employee’s religious beliefs and background is only one aspect of a DE&I culture, it seems to me it is too often forgotten.
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In 2022, Jason founded JAME Consulting, LLC which provides comprehensive HR, legal and data privacy compliance solutions for all stages of the employee lifecycle. Please see the “Our Services” and “About Us” links at www.jameconsulting.com for more information about the services provided by JAME Consulting.
Dear colleagues,
I would be interested in your thoughts on the event below, and the aftermath, as it relates to your experiences in the workplace. Please see polling questions after the summary. These events hit me hard last week and gave me reason for self-reflection. Forewarning, my polling questions may make you squirm a bit….
Last week during the NFL Monday night football game between Buffalo and Cincinnati, time seemed to stand still as a stunning and terrifying event occurred during the game. Damar Hamlin, a young special teams and defensive player for the Bills in his second year of professional football, collapsed after making a tackle and went into cardiac arrest. Medical personnel responded immediately by administering CPR. Hamlin’s teammates and coaches, as well as the players and coaches from the opposing team, were understandably shaken and gathered together to pray on the field as medical personnel continued treatment and ultimately transported him via ambulance to a hospital in Cincinnati. The game was cancelled, and social media exploded with well wishes and messages of “prayers” being lifted.
During a broadcast of ESPN’s “NFL Live” the next evening (when Hamlin was still in critical condition at the hospital), Dan Orlovsky (a former NFL quarterback who is now a commentator for ESPN) paused during the middle of the live program and prayed on-air for Hamlin. A link to the live footage showing his prayer is below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pk9TwonTnCM
I would imagine many of you reading this have been following the aftermath of Hamlin’s injury and we can now all breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Hamlin seems to be recovering well.
Polling Questions:
How did you react to the prayers taking place on the field and in the aftermath?
For me – it was uplifting to see that in a moment of potential tragedy, many individuals including those who likely were of different backgrounds, religious affiliations, political beliefs, etc., put their differences aside and came together with one common purpose of lifting prayers of healing. It’s disappointing to me that seemingly only in the midst of tragedy can our society come together like this.
Have you ever had a situation occur in the workplace that resulted in individual or group prayer for a fellow employee?
For me – I can only think of one time in my 20+ year corporate career when this occurred, and I was the one being prayed for. See further details on this after the next question.
Would you ever feel comfortable leading such a prayer? Or having another employee ask to pray for you?
For me – it is convicting to admit that I would be nervous about leading such a prayer in the workplace especially as I consider myself a man of faith, a Christian who aspires to lead his life and family and “personal life” in accordance with Biblical teachings.
That being said, I will share with you that one of the most impactful moments in my professional career, and personal life, occurred a few years ago. Our family was going through a very emotional time after a traumatic event. I probably should not have been in the office that day but had a meeting on the calendar I was scheduled to help co- facilitate with external attendees coming in from out of state. I felt obligated to be there. Prior to the meeting, I walked into the office of my co-facilitator (someone who I consider one of the most impactful mentors in my professional and personal life) and he immediately could tell I was in a bad state. Without hesitation, he told me to close the door and then asked if he could pray for me. I nearly broke…… battling back tears, I said “yes, please do” and he lifted up a prayer that was desperately needed and tremendously impactful. He then told me to go home to be with my family and that he would take care of the meeting.
Why do I offer up such a long and perhaps “too personal” post on Linked-In? Because if the events of last week should teach us anything, it is that life is too short and if you are moved by prayer….. then pray. If you prefer not to pray, or are not a person of faith, that choice should be respected in the workplace as well. While an employee’s religious beliefs and background is only one aspect of a DE&I culture, it seems to me it is too often forgotten.