Does Obedience Have a Place at Work?

We're approaching the end of our Stability Project. The final two entries we'll consider this week may at first blush seem OK for a monastery, but maybe inappropriate for our workplace. But if we give St. Benedict some leeway, we can find some precious nuggets of wisdom that will contribute to the order, calm, and peace that foster stability in the workplace

The first of our entries focuses on obedience. "Obedience" may seem out of place in the typical workplace, what St. Benedict describes here can help us create and maintain a practical and prudent sense of order as we go about our business. 

Then again, we might remind ourselves that some occupations do indeed overtly require a degree of obedience. Thinking here of the military and, to a lesser degree, law enforcement as the clearest examples. 

So while some of us may blanch at the idea of being obedient to a superior, others may find the concept perfectly normal.

If obedience may be too strong a term to use in our relationships to our superiors at work, we can simply substitute deference and/or respect, that can serve our purposes.

The key points are that we need to have the right attitude and display appropriate language and behavior towards our boss; and if we do, it can not only help us in our relationships at work, but also benefit our spiritual life - a good combination.

Here's what St. Benedict has written:

"Not only shall the virtue of obedience be practiced by all towards the abbot, but the brethren shall also obey one another, knowing that by this road of obedience will they go to God. The commands of the abbot or of the superiors appointed by him must rank first, and no unofficial command take precedence of them; but for the rest, let all the juniors obey their seniors with all love and diligence. If anyone be quarrelsome, let him be corrected. And if any brother, for however trifling a reason be corrected in any way by the abbot, or any of his seniors, or if he perceive that any senior, in however small a degree, is displeased or angry with him, let him at once without delay cast himself on the ground at his feet, and lie there making reparation, until that displeasure is appeased and he bless him..."

Notice that the Rule commands obedience not only to the abbot - in our case, the boss - but also towards fellow monks, which we might translate to our co-workers. 

If deference and respect are appropriate for our boss, they can also be applies to co-workers. And why not? Setting aside the possibly thorny issue of the individual who can be difficult to work with, or may even actively treat us with a lack of deference and respect, it's easy to understand that co-workers deserve our respect and deference. 

What about the difficult cases? Frankly, to the extent possible, they too deserve our deference and respect. A difficult-to-work-with co-worker may make it hard for us to be deferential or respectful, but there's merit to be gained in our spiritual life if we "put up with" this for the most part. And if we can, for our part, be patient, kind, deferential, respectful, etc. the merit can be ratcheted up a few degrees.

One caveat: If the co-worker is somehow trying to undermine your work, your position by nefarious means, then you step back and watch your back. If you can do so while maintaining a calm, even charitable disposition, so much the better. But do protect yourself.

As for casting yourself at the feet of colleague you may have offended, as St. Benedict commands his monks, well, we're not monks. A simple apology will do.

So considering the spiritual benefits as well as the practical benefits to our relationships in the workplace, obedience, or some similar attitude, serves our Stability Project well.