Wednesday, September 28, 2005
A Personal Establishment Clause
Now that I have a new office all to myself, I'm thinking about how to decorate it. As this is my own personal space, I'm kind of excited to have the complete freedom to put up whatever art I want. Here at home, I have to consider Shelly's tastes, and our tastes don't always match.
Among the artists that I really like that Shelly doesn't like is Minerva Teichert, an early 20th century European-trained Utah Mormon impressionist. I've thought about getting a print of one of her paintings, but the problem is that most of her paintings, and nearly all of her paintings that I really like, are paintings of Jesus Christ.
And for some reason, it doesn't seem right to have a painting of Jesus Christ in my office. Even though it's my personal space. Even though hardly anyone but me ever goes in there. Even though I believe in Jesus Christ as my Savior, and frankly, nothing is more important to me than following Him.
So I'm wondering why it would be socially unacceptable. Here are a few possible arguments about why it would be.
Argument #1: It's unprofessional. What's unprofessional about Jesus Christ? Sure, he doesn't have much to do specifically with the law (except for his role as the divine lawgiver), but neither do the paintings of landscapes or whatever that are appropriate in an office. And it's not like it's a poster of SpongeBob Squarepants. Christ is a very serious subject that should inspire more respect than ridicule. And it's not like a client who visited my office (as if a client would visit the office of a first-year associate) would think me less capable because of my professed belief in Christ.
Argument #2: It's offensive to non-Christians. Why on Earth would someone be offended by the fact that I believe in something they don't? It's my space, not theirs. It's my money, not theirs (and not the government's) that went to pay for the painting. I would have no problem going into a Jewish person's office and seeing a Menorah there, or a Muslim's office with a decorative inscription from the Koran, or a Buddhist's office with a statue of Buddha, or a Catholic's office with a big crucifix. It's defining of who they are, and although I may not share their beliefs, there's nothing offensive about that. I'm not forcing my beliefs on anyone else when I put up a painting in my office; I'm just creating the kind of atmosphere I want.
Argument #3: I should keep my religion to myself. No I shouldn't. Christ himself told us to go into all the world proclaiming the gospel. I spent two years as a full-time missionary. If people ask me where I'm from, and I say Salt Lake, they nearly always ask me if I'm Mormon. Am I supposed to say, "No comment"? Different religions are part of the diversity of this great nation, and I'm not ashamed of mine.
Argument #4: That's not the kind of vibe I should have in my professional office. Sure, I don't want to feel like I'm going to church when I go to work, but what good is a belief in Christ if you don't believe in him all week. In fact, one of the coolest things about the idea of a painting of Christ in the office is that it would bring a good feeling into the office, and always remind me of the important things in life, precisely at the time when I'm bogged down by the mundane things (and precisely when I'm most likely to be tempted to act like a stereotypical unethical lawyer).
I'll admit it. I'm not very likely to put up a picture of Christ in my office. But I can't for the life of me think of a good reason not to. Can anyone help me out on this?
Among the artists that I really like that Shelly doesn't like is Minerva Teichert, an early 20th century European-trained Utah Mormon impressionist. I've thought about getting a print of one of her paintings, but the problem is that most of her paintings, and nearly all of her paintings that I really like, are paintings of Jesus Christ.
And for some reason, it doesn't seem right to have a painting of Jesus Christ in my office. Even though it's my personal space. Even though hardly anyone but me ever goes in there. Even though I believe in Jesus Christ as my Savior, and frankly, nothing is more important to me than following Him.
So I'm wondering why it would be socially unacceptable. Here are a few possible arguments about why it would be.
Argument #1: It's unprofessional. What's unprofessional about Jesus Christ? Sure, he doesn't have much to do specifically with the law (except for his role as the divine lawgiver), but neither do the paintings of landscapes or whatever that are appropriate in an office. And it's not like it's a poster of SpongeBob Squarepants. Christ is a very serious subject that should inspire more respect than ridicule. And it's not like a client who visited my office (as if a client would visit the office of a first-year associate) would think me less capable because of my professed belief in Christ.
Argument #2: It's offensive to non-Christians. Why on Earth would someone be offended by the fact that I believe in something they don't? It's my space, not theirs. It's my money, not theirs (and not the government's) that went to pay for the painting. I would have no problem going into a Jewish person's office and seeing a Menorah there, or a Muslim's office with a decorative inscription from the Koran, or a Buddhist's office with a statue of Buddha, or a Catholic's office with a big crucifix. It's defining of who they are, and although I may not share their beliefs, there's nothing offensive about that. I'm not forcing my beliefs on anyone else when I put up a painting in my office; I'm just creating the kind of atmosphere I want.
Argument #3: I should keep my religion to myself. No I shouldn't. Christ himself told us to go into all the world proclaiming the gospel. I spent two years as a full-time missionary. If people ask me where I'm from, and I say Salt Lake, they nearly always ask me if I'm Mormon. Am I supposed to say, "No comment"? Different religions are part of the diversity of this great nation, and I'm not ashamed of mine.
Argument #4: That's not the kind of vibe I should have in my professional office. Sure, I don't want to feel like I'm going to church when I go to work, but what good is a belief in Christ if you don't believe in him all week. In fact, one of the coolest things about the idea of a painting of Christ in the office is that it would bring a good feeling into the office, and always remind me of the important things in life, precisely at the time when I'm bogged down by the mundane things (and precisely when I'm most likely to be tempted to act like a stereotypical unethical lawyer).
I'll admit it. I'm not very likely to put up a picture of Christ in my office. But I can't for the life of me think of a good reason not to. Can anyone help me out on this?
Comments:
Possible Argument #5 - Is it against firm policy? Sometimes religion and the workplace don't mix. I had an incident at a former place of work where an employee complained that someone had a menorah in their cube during Chanukah. I didn't see any harm in it and I thought the complaint was a little far fetched.
The manager ended up asking the employee to remove the menorah and she did without incident. Being a little nosey I asked the manager why that decision was made. He took the point of view that the workplace should be a place where personal convictions/beliefs should not be blatantly displayed.
He also commented that he always looks at the other extreme to someone’s point of view. What if someone wanted to display a risqué photo or a swastika? I thought that was a little too extreme to take his thinking but that was his thought process.
Time passed and I was not reminded of it again until 9/12/2001 when I had to smile because everyone had American flags hanging in their cubes, even the manager.
So I guess a question might be: If you were to walk into another lawyer’s office in another firm and see a menorah or a statue of the Virgin Mary would you feel the same as if you saw a Monet print?
The manager ended up asking the employee to remove the menorah and she did without incident. Being a little nosey I asked the manager why that decision was made. He took the point of view that the workplace should be a place where personal convictions/beliefs should not be blatantly displayed.
He also commented that he always looks at the other extreme to someone’s point of view. What if someone wanted to display a risqué photo or a swastika? I thought that was a little too extreme to take his thinking but that was his thought process.
Time passed and I was not reminded of it again until 9/12/2001 when I had to smile because everyone had American flags hanging in their cubes, even the manager.
So I guess a question might be: If you were to walk into another lawyer’s office in another firm and see a menorah or a statue of the Virgin Mary would you feel the same as if you saw a Monet print?
May I suggest another possibility? So many of Christ's followers these days have moved their testimony of the Savior out of their hearts and onto their bumper stickers. I see great reverence in not putting that very private and personally sacred part of your life on display for non-believers to ridicule.
Your testimony remains in your heart, and on those occasions when appropriate I'm sure you'll share it with others. One can be a advocate for Christ without being a carnival barker.
Post a Comment
Your testimony remains in your heart, and on those occasions when appropriate I'm sure you'll share it with others. One can be a advocate for Christ without being a carnival barker.
