Religion in the workplace

[Whatothink]

For the last month we have been sent messages email, background screens and management briefings for a particular religion.

the following messages to

”showing visible support,
encouraging meaningful conversations, and deepening our understanding of the experiences of those of observences”

as well as being told to be considered with meetings etc and thoughtful and supportive!!!

Sometimes you just have to hope you can kill them with kindness. Not literally kill before I get accused of something else.

This is ridiculous though. Why can't you talk about the restaurant meal you had the evening before, the meal you are planning, the Mother's Day lunch... There are loads of videos online demonstrating recipes for Ramadan and photos of Sadiq Khan enjoying an Iftar meal at a 5-star hotel in London.

This is a long thread. You will have to remind me where people were told not to talk about food please.

You are the one lecturing with your lazy stereotypes about Daily Mail readers etc. I don't think I believe you when you say you have no issues with people choosing to follow a religion - I suspect you have vocalised your views on the Catholic faith in real life.

I don't think this discussion has got anything to do with skin-colour whatsoever. If anything it highlights a tension between liberalism versus the accommodation of strict religious observance.

Regarding your other posts, it was YOU who referred to previous comments you had made without indicating what they were. I naturally searched for those comments before replying. Bad luck your anti-Catholic views were also highlighted in my search - I have no interest in you otherwise.

You pressed send before finding that quote.

Which quote do you want?

It’s more like not banging on about food when fasting colleagues are around.

I would avoid eating or, especially drinking in front of a colleague who was fasting.

You said:

This is ridiculous though. Why can't you talk about the restaurant meal you had the evening before

I wondered who had said that they could not talk etc etc ? I followed the quote history in your post, but I could find it there ?

Restaurant meal wasn't specifically listed - rather it was 'not talking about how much you enjoyed your meal last night'.

I frequently post about my opposition to organised religion and my objection to the way it impacts on our society. That doesn't mean that I won’t be polite and considerate to other people practicing their faith as individuals. That is very different to religion being allowed to impact on the way our society runs, in the way that Christianity does in the UK. Perfectly happy to let a member of staff leave a little early on a holy day of obligation to get to mass. Not happy for Christians to have a bigger choice of schools than non believers. For example.

What about equalising gender pay gap, or this that too woke too?

Even though it was Christians who set up those schools?

My lived experience from 12yrs was not of peaceful co-existence. To specify any more would sadly raise accusations, so the unpalatable truth is pushed under. as recent history has widely reported in the media.

You sound like hard work.

I have clearly said that I am not religious but respect the right of others to follow a faith.

As long as nobody tries to impose their views on me.

To that effect I have never had any issues with Muslims colleagues.

I have no interest in engaging further with people like you and the OP who have an obvious agenda.

You sound like hard work as well.

You side-stepped my thoughts on how you interacted with Catholic colleagues.

My only obvious agenda is that I don't want to be told that I can't eat biscuits or birthday cake in front of fasting colleagues for four weeks, or that I have to be discreet about it/not talk about food.

As for respecting the right of others to follow a faith, I notice that several of the #bekind posters have mocked the Christian faith up thread, even with an analogy implying that believers be sent to a [mental] asylum.

You’re not being told you can’t. You’re being asked to consider not being a dick about it. Entirely up to you whether you choose to be a dick or not. And if you have issues with individual posters being disobliging about Christianity (I must have missed those posts) why not take that up with the individual poster concerned.

You’re being asked to consider not being a dick about it. Entirely up to you whether you choose to be a dick or not.

What does that even mean when you are the poster who said you would avoid eating or drinking in front of fasting colleagues!

It was suggested to me that I should not offer/eat birthday cake in front of fasting colleagues, or I should be tactful or discreet about it, or arrange a celebration of my birthday after work instead so as not to offend.

OP, you are being obscure again. This post, with its reference to your 'lived experience', strays far from your objection to initiatives in the workplace to promote religious tolerance and understanding. It is also noticeable that your sentences are written in a far more formal style than that on display in previous posts. If you want engagement, advice and opinions, you have to be explicit.

Well that’s the reality of it here in Ireland . No non Catholic school in the area (and most of the country ) so my DC sits in the corner colouring with another child during religion classes. So in my state job I don’t want to see any emails coming in about Catholicism. Or any other religion.

YANBU. There should be no place in work for religion. All wars are started because of religion or politics. Live and let live, yes. But no-one/religion/politics should be favoured above another

It means that I would choose not to be a dick about it. Feel free to behave differently. This is not an edict!

I think you are being a bit over sensitive but I don’t know what past experiences you have had to cause this.
I am not religious at all but can respect and feel fairly inquisitive when it comes to others religions.
Fasting can affect your colleagues during their work day so I think it’s ok to be asked to be respectful and supportive.
Not sure if it’s Muslims you are talking about but they do get a fair bit of negativity and where I live I think people have felt a bit intimidated by the flag brigade.
So it’s nice to show them you are accepting and supportive, to work against that negativity.

You might say “oversensitive”. I might say racist….

I am a Catholic, do my colleague's know my religion? No, do I expect special treatment during Lent? Again, no. Why do certain people expect special treatment?

Nobody does expect “special treatment”.

In your opinion, maybe. I’ve seen different.