Christianity teaches that the
work we do is part of the way we worship God. Put another way, a Christian
should choose a job that is pleasing to God.
There are many jobs within the
church, including priests, vicars, ministers etc. but also secretaries, accountants
and others who work for the church.
Jobs that involve caring for people fit
in well with Jesus' command to 'love thy neighbour'. This may include working
in hospitals, schools, social work etc.
God made humans to be like Him, and many
Christians argue that it is important for everyone to be productive or
creative. Farming would be particularly appropriate, as would any job where
you are making things that people need (Jesus himself was a carpenter).
Christians would argue that our occupation
should be fulfilling, and they would be against any jobs that dehumanised
people - for example, working in a call centre. Jesus said "I came that
you may live life to the full."
Working
within different
industries
There are certain industries and companies that Christians would consider
immoral. For example, many Christians think it is wrong to encourage people
to gamble. These Christians would avoid getting a job working for the National
Lottery. In general, Christians would avoid working for companies that:
make or use gambling equipment
produce firearms
create alcohol or tobacco
operate nuclear power stations
sell military weapons
experiment on animals
pollute the environment
produce pornography
have a bad human rights record
have poor employment records
work with oppressive regimes
support GM foods, embryology, abortion etc.
Christians working in industry might particularly look for companies that
actively support:
environmental protection
pollution control
conservation and recycling
safety and security
ethical employment practices
fair trade
Last year, some of our students investigated their work experience placements, to see if a Christian would be happy there. Click here to see what they said...