Monday, December 25, 2006

When a prayer is not a prayer

I've often prayed in my workplace and, even when I wasn't working as a pastor, no one had a problem. But then I never quite went to the extent of inviting a couple of other people to pray with me, then anointed a co-workers space, and prayed over my co-workers space about evil dogs leaving the workspace. And yet someone who did that and was, IMO, quite properly fired has filed a lawsuit "alleging that they were wrongfully fired last spring based on their religion, age and gender."

I think the word for this is chutzpah. It's like throwing oneself on the mercy of the court because one is an orphan - though one murdered their parents. Certainly one can say a quick prayer over one's meal, or when a fellow worker is causing problems, or for many other things. But when one goes to the extent of anointing a fellow workers area - that is damaging the employers property - and calling a co-worker 'demonically posseses' - that is harassment. It's not the same thing as being fired for one's religion, gender or age - which is what the lawsuit claims.

This is not being a martyr for one's faith. This is holding up Christianity for ridicule because of pure and simple idiocy. This is not spreading the faith or healing the sick, it is making a mockery of another human being and the faith one claims to profess.

And to appeal a firing is chutzpah. And I can't think of a word to indicate the lawyers who took on this case - ambulance chaser doesn't quite do it.

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