Ideas bounce around my head about working for the Church if one is not a member of the clergy or a religious order. Some of my friends would say, "Why bother?" There's some truth in this attitude. There's a lot of problems with working in the Church these days and not all of it regarding pay. Let's just say, working for the Church can be a great place to use your talent for Someone greater and for eternal consequences. Experience tells me that church-working need not be a sad, hostile, dysfunctional place to spend one's life. BTW, what I say is not only for the laity because the clergy have the same issues.
I wonder if working for the Church could be:
- a great place to work at; a fun place to work, a welcoming, loving & fulfilling culture
- a place where a good use of technology possible for the Gospel (tech is hot these days)
- a place to network with Catholics (Christians and "seekers") to propose a new lens of life
- time available to see how your work affects lots of people
- a place that will teach you something new
- pay and perks that strive to be competitive
- a place where the employees are happy
- have opportunities for spiritual development.
There's a lot that's wrong with the way the Church works in the world today. Many dioceses, indeed, the Holy See and the Vatican, have effectively disaffected people because a lack of humanity, courage, love, compassion and faith. What comes to mind, is that working for the Church ought to be a place where the glory of God is man and woman fully alive working for something Greater: salvation.
If business is working on these matters, why not the Church? The proclamation of the Gospel and a sacramental life ought to take on best practices of the business world. I pray for the grace of knowing my own need for conversion, fraternity, vocation and mission. We all need a place to exercise a God-given diakonia and martyria (service and witness).
Saint John, beloved friend of the Lord, pray for us.
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