On one of the chat-boards I participate on, a member was concerned that his job was in danger. The situation is simply that his two bosses -- one an evangelical Christian, the other an orthodox Jew -- were requiring that each work-day start in prayer. To add, the employees were informed that they would be required to lead prayer.Being as the concerned board-member is an atheist, he wanted to seek out advice for how to handle the situation.
The most creative response so far has been the following:
Recite this prayer:My abdomen now hurts from laughing too hard.
"Our lager, Which art in barrels, Hallowed be thy drink. Thy will be drunk, I will be drunk, At home as it is in the tavern. Give us this day our foamy head, And forgive us our spillages, As we forgive those who spill against us. And lead us not to incarceration, But deliver us from hangovers. For thine is the beer, The bitter, The lager.
Ramen."
What would you suggest this atheist do?
2 comments:
Perhaps sincerely express that s/he thinks that prayer is a private interaction between each person and his/her God? Or at least where everyone present is in agreement about who they are talking to (which wouldn't be the case as you've described it).
I had to stop myself from laughing at the ode to beer, btw, because I was on the verge of having a nasty bout of hiccups from too much belly activity, lol.
I agree with Imogen that the person should claim privacy of religion and prayer. Maybe site the advice from the Bible about praying in a closet and not in public. I always do to get out of prying out loud. It happens to be against my religion because it turns my interaction with the divine very fake. I think it is wrong for them to insist that employees participate in prayer. Maybe they should make it a voluntary activity in a separate room or something.
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