What is the mission of the Theology of Work project?

Our mission is to develop a basic Christian Theology of Work that will serve as a scaffold for researchers, writers, teachers and others to build upon. In turn, they will produce books, papers, curricula, magazines, courses, seminars, sermons, workshops and other materials and events for workers. Using these resources, workers can perceive God s purpose, meaning, and value in their work, and bring Christ s redeeming power into the fabric of their workplaces. This mission is intentionally indirect. The Project s mission is to develop the underlying theology and disseminate it to workplace ministries, individuals, and churches which have resources and channels in place to educate, train and equip individual Christians. These groups can reach workplace Christians more effectively than we can.

Who owns this theology of work?

Everyone; and no one.  The results of this five year effort will eventually be uploaded in wiki format so literally everyone who has Internet access will be able to work with and interact with this body of knowledge.  The team has been carefully constructed to include as wide an array as possible of viewpoints without departing from traditional Orthodox/Historical Christian doctrine. 

Is this competition for churches and work/faith ministries? 

Quite the opposite is true. We are capturing information that we believe will enable churches and work/faith ministries to accomplish their tasks with greater unity, clarity and energy.  By constructing a scaffold of generally accepted work/faith principles, individuals, churches and ministries can draw down theologically tested Biblical principles that apply directly to the issues workers face, and use those principles to develop materials useful to them at the real intersection points of work and faith.

Why bother building a theology of work? What is its vision?

Most people spend a lot of their lives working. If God is Lord of all then surely God must be the Lord of work. But most Christians don t see their faith as a vital element of their work. So they miss much of the blessing and satisfaction that work should offer. And they also miss opportunities to bring the redemptive power of Christ into their workplaces and into society as a whole.

Take a computer salesman, for example. Every good salesman in a business with repeat customers knows what it means to be a servant. If you serve your customers, they come back. If you don't, they don't. But does a Christian salesman know that in serving customers, they are also serving the Lord? (Col. 3:17) Do they invest time to know and love their customers for their worth as beings in the image of God? Do they recognize that honesty and integrity are as important on a sales call as at an altar call? When a customer gets a new system online, does the computer salesman feel the satisfaction of knowing that their work has lasting even eternal significance?

Does the machinist in a gear factory know that God delights in the beauty of good brass work? (Ex. 35:30-34) Do they know that God cares more about how they treat their co-workers than about how much of their paycheck they put in the collection plate? Does a nurse recognize nursing the healing work itself as an occupation of Jesus, the Great Physician? Does the hotel cleaning supervisor see how Jesus treated poor people with a sense of dignity that others missed and then go and do likewise? When Christians face difficult decisions at work, do they ever think of turning to the Bible for help, or expecting useful guidance from the church?

Do non-Christians say, "I'm glad my boss is a Christian, because I know she will always treat me fairly and put my interests above her own?" Does society say it wishes businesses made more decisions by following the way of Jesus?

The Theology of Work Project envisions a time when the answer to all these questions is routinely, yes. Our role is to develop a foundational theology of work and to disseminate it, in partnership with faith-work organizations and with churches, widely enough to reach workplace Christians across the world.

What are the primary objectives of the Project? 

(1) To assemble a Steering Committee of the most able members of its key constituencies, namely biblical scholars, theologians, ethicists, economists and organizational scientists, workers, and workplace ministers;
(2) To produce a Theology of Work that is as broadly acceptable as possible, being relevant for every kind of workplace around the world, and meeting the approval of the full spectrum of traditions within the orthodox/historical Christian faith; and,
(3) To disseminate the Theology of Work as widely as possible, to reach the millions of people who may benefit from it.

What is the target audience for the final product?

The Project's primary market is researchers, writers, teachers and others who develop faith-work integration materials for workers in non-church-related workplaces. There are also several secondary markets. One is researchers, writers, and teachers in fields such as economics, organizational sciences, management, government, and law who are seeking to engage Christian theology. Another secondary market is researcher/writer/teachers in traditional Christian disciplines such as biblical studies, theology, preaching, pastoral care, and missions who seek to gain a theological perspective on the workplace. Workplace Christians themselves also constitute a secondary market, and they will be able access the Theology of Work directly, if they choose. (We will not try to reach workplace Christians by circumventing the Project s primary market of faith-work researchers/writers/teachers, but we will try to avoid technical terms, assumptions, and references that would put the Theology of Work beyond the reach of ordinary Christians who possess a solid biblical/theological background.) Finally we may find a small market among people of other faiths or no faith wishing to understand the workplace from a Christian perspective.

What criteria does the project apply in its efforts? 

The Theology of Work Project's mission is to develop a robust, practical, widely-accepted Christian Theology of Work. Towards this end, the Steering Committee set six criteria for the Theology of Work to fulfill. It must be

1. rooted in the entire Bible, rather than only isolated texts;
2. timeless, or universal, in the sense of elucidating truths about work that apply in all situations, and do not depend on the particularities of the work, the workers, or the context;
3. timely, or relevant, in the sense of leading to answers to the myriad questions that arise in actual workplace situations, which do depend greatly on the particularities of the work, the workers, and the context;
4. understandable to all of its intended audiences without using specialized theological knowledge;
5. as broadly acceptable as possible, without departing from orthodox/historical Christian theology; and
6. engaged with the major published works in the theology of work, whether in agreement or disagreement at various points.

Who called this project into existence?

The Project has been led since its inception by co-chairs Haddon Robinson and Tom Phillips. Dr. Robinson is also president of the Project.  Haddon Robinson combines executive experience with theological acumen and communications excellence. His executive experience arises from his 12 years as president of Denver Seminary and 16 years as director of the Doctor of Ministry program at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. His appointment as the Harold John Ockenga Distinguished Professor at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary shows that his scholarship is highly regarded. But more than this, he is a pioneer in applying the Bible to the workplace. He is the only non-physician ever to serve as General Director of the Christian Medical and Dental Society (1970-79), where he honed his ability to apply the Scripture to real-life situations outside the church. In 2000 he launched the world's first and to date only Doctor of Ministry program for the non-church workplace. He has served on the board of directors of Marketplace Network since its inception in the 1990s. His excellence in communication is widely known, for instance through Discover the Word (formerly Radio Bible Class) and his selection as one of the twelve most influential preachers in the English language by a Baylor University poll published in Newsweek magazine in 1996. Dr. Robinson also serves as a fellow and senior editor of Christianity Today. As Steering Committee members were being invited to join, the Project realized that Dr. Robinson's reputation for integrity and personal warmth were even more significant than his professional skills. Simply put, a majority of the Steering Committee members joined the Project chiefly because Dr. Robinson was its leader. In fact many people who responded to the Project's letters said they did so only because the letters came from Dr. Robinson and Mr. Phillips. Many of them believed that some organization should attempt the Project's mission. Most were convinced that the Theology of Work Project was the right organization to do it because Haddon Robinson was its co-chair.

Tom Phillips brings a similar reputation, originating in the business world rather than in academia. Mr. Phillips enjoys an unsurpassed reputation as an effective and ethical corporate leader, and also as a biblical/theological teacher. He served as president, CEO and chairman of Raytheon from 1964 to 1991. During this time Raytheon was consistently profitable, yet virtually alone among defense contractors in avoiding the unethical business practices which ultimately led to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Like Dr. Robinson, Mr. Phillips is a pioneer in the faith-work movement and a founding board member of Marketplace Network. He co-founded, and after 33 years still leads, a monthly gathering of businessmen, scholars, and clergy called First Tuesday. He teaches the seminar Practical Faith in the Marketplace at locations including Harvard Business School, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northeastern University, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, and Park Street Church. Mr. Phillips personal ethical commitment and long-term investment in the lives of others secured the commitment of many members and supporters of the Project. If people were impressed with Dr. Robinson s involvement, they were often convinced by Mr. Phillips . He is, of course, well known as the person through whom the Holy Spirit led Chuck Colson to Christ an event which occurred as a result of a business meeting between the two men. We discovered that many others have quietly benefited from Mr. Phillips encouragement and ethical commitment, and were willing to join the Project because he was a co-chair.

Where do I go for more information on the project? 

You can reach us by emailing Cheryl Kilgore, interim Project Director, at cheryl@theologyofwork.org, or by writing us at Theology of Work Project, Inc., One Park Street, Boston, MA 02108.