Those who regularly attend religious services are twice as likely to describe themselves as “very happy” than those who never attend services. This startling statistic, found in a study conducted by The Austin Institute for the Study of Family and Culture demonstrates the power religion can have in creating happiness in a person’s life. All religions, whether the religion is Christianity, Islam, or Buddhism, preach a message which can instill values such as love and peace in people which can accordingly cause happiness. Religious believes can apply this happiness to ordinary life through business, as in the article “Faith at Work” by Russell Shorto, in which he examines the application of faith to the workplace, specifically at a Christian
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In his article, Short describes the day to day operations of the bank, which include Ripka laying his hands on and praying with his customers (Shorto 516), a component integral to a Christian business, and he also describes the various effects that the Christianity has on the business and its customers. Ripka’s bank has positive effects on customers, as he “‘[gives] more grace’” to those who “are behind on payments (Shorto 522) than the average bank, obviously helping to enhance the lives of his customers. The Christianity behind the bank also has a positive effect on its employees, whether they profess Christianity or not; one employee, who did not associate with the Christian culture, still remarked that the bank was still a “‘wonderful’ place to work because ‘here the people are all nice—it’s a healthy environment” (Shorto 524). This description of the bank by an employee contrasts with the stereotypical description, or ideal type, of a bank: disconnected men who run the bank and who care almost nothing for their employees or their customers; I believe that the Christian aspect of Ripka’s bank allows his bank to escape this description. Although only looks at one example of a religiously based business, called a case study, I believe that it still has substantial relevance in that it shows that the involvement of religion in a business has a positive effect on the workplace and creates a workplace environment that exceeds one in a non-religiously based
In his article, Short describes the day to day operations of the bank, which include Ripka laying his hands on and praying with his customers (Shorto 516), a component integral to a Christian business, and he also describes the various effects that the Christianity has on the business and its customers. Ripka’s bank has positive effects on customers, as he “‘[gives] more grace’” to those who “are behind on payments (Shorto 522) than the average bank, obviously helping to enhance the lives of his customers. The Christianity behind the bank also has a positive effect on its employees, whether they profess Christianity or not; one employee, who did not associate with the Christian culture, still remarked that the bank was still a “‘wonderful’ place to work because ‘here the people are all nice—it’s a healthy environment” (Shorto 524). This description of the bank by an employee contrasts with the stereotypical description, or ideal type, of a bank: disconnected men who run the bank and who care almost nothing for their employees or their customers; I believe that the Christian aspect of Ripka’s bank allows his bank to escape this description. Although only looks at one example of a religiously based business, called a case study, I believe that it still has substantial relevance in that it shows that the involvement of religion in a business has a positive effect on the workplace and creates a workplace environment that exceeds one in a non-religiously based