The Christian Body at Work
Spirituality, Embodiment, and Christian Living
by Tobias Brugger
English summary: A large part of the global workforce is said to be Christians, but what does it mean to be a Christian at work? This study offers a review of relevant research from management and organisation studies as well as from theology; it reports on fieldwork among business managers in Switzerland and proposes an embodiment perspective on Christians at work. The author identifies difficulties relating to the predominant uses of terms such as faith, spirituality and religion at work, and argues for the importance of taking Christians’ framing practices and bodily forms of existence into account. By participating in a bodily form in Christ’s death and resurrection, and by thus practising Christ’s body, Christians find themselves located at an existential nerve centre for carrying out work activities. This study shows how the notion of ‘Christians’ can open up conceptual space for relevant organisational, managerial, sociological, ethical and theological aspects concerning contemporary work settings. German description: Ein Grossteil der arbeitenden Bevolkerung weltweit gilt als christlich affiliiert, doch was bedeutet Christsein am Arbeitsplatz? Die Studie beleuchtet dazu Forschung aus Management- und Organisationswissenschaften und Theologie, prasentiert Feldforschung zu ManagerInnen in der Schweiz und entwickelt eine Verkorperungsperspektive. Der Autor benennt Schwierigkeiten der vorherrschenden Verwendung von Begriffen wie Glaube, Spiritualitat oder Religion am Arbeitsplatz und pladiert dafur, Framing-Praktiken und die Korperhaftigkeit christlicher Existenz zu berucksichtigen. Indem ChristInnen in korperlicher Form an Christi Tod und Auferstehung teilhaben und so Christus verkorpern, finden sie sich an einer existentiellen Schaltstelle fur die Gestaltung von Arbeitsaktivitaten. Die Studie zeigt, wie der Fokus auf Christinnen und Christen einen Raum fur relevante organisations- und managementbezogene, soziologische, ethische und theologische Aspekte zeitgenossischer Arbeitskontexte eroffnet.
Tobias Brugger is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Zurich and a 2021 C. William Pollard faith and business research fellow at Seattle Pacific University.
- By (author) Tobias Brugger
Other Titles in this Series
Integration durch Religion?
Geschichtliche Befunde, gesellschaftliche Analysen, rechtliche Perspektiven
Volume 10
Religion – Wirtschaft – Politik
Forschungszugange zu einem aktuellen transdisziplinaren Feld
Volume 1
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