What is Our Responsibility as Catholics to Positively Impact the Culture in Which We Work?

by Randy Hain | September 7, 2010 12:02 am

Listen to the recording of the August 30, 2010 Ideas and Issues Forum moderated panel discussion…[1]

[2]The Integrated Catholic Life recently sponsored the inaugural Catholic Ideas and Issues Forum in Atlanta on August 30, 2010.  The Forum, which featured a moderated panel discussion, focused on the topic: What is our Responsibility as Catholics to Positively Impact the Culture in Which We Work? The host for the evening was St. Peter Chanel Catholic Church in Roswell, Georgia.

Mission: The Catholic Ideas and Issues Forum, an outreach of the Atlanta Catholic Business Conference, provides opportunities throughout the year for men and women in the Catholic business and professional community to focus on important and relevant topics through moderated forums with panel discussions and Q&A sessions.

The Integrated Catholic Life sponsors conferences and other events relevant to integrating faith, family and work, and we are pleased to offer the following recap and conference recordings.

Recap of the inaugural Catholic Ideas and Issues Forum:

Moderator

Raellyn Kovich, Director of Consulting at Pathbuilders; Parishioner at St. Ann’s, wife and mother one daughter.

Panelists

Paige Barry, SVP of Fiserv; Parishioner of St. Monica’s and head of Career Ministry, wife and mother of two children.

Cindy Nofi, Private Client Advisor at U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management; Parishioner at St. Peter Chanel, PSR Teacher, wife and mother of two children.

Elizabeth Kim, HR Generalist at Burris Logistics; Parishioner at Korean Martyrs Catholic Church, single, recent graduate of Georgia State University.

The inaugural Catholic Ideas and Issues Forum provided a unique opportunity for an enthusiastic and diverse group of attendees to participate in a highly interactive discussion around the topic of the responsibility of Catholics to positively impact their work cultures.  Our esteemed panel, led by experienced moderator Raellyn Kovich, kept the attendees fully engaged throughout the evening with their transparent and candid answers to a variety of questions from Ms. Kovich and the audience.  A sampling of the questions included:

• As you look back on your career, what has been your experience when it comes to faith in the workplace?
• What sort of challenges have you encountered in your desire to express your faith in the workplace?
• Beliefs about the roles and responsibilities of women in Christianity vary.  How has being female helped and/or hindered you in positively impacting your workplace culture?
• Each workplace culture is different, some cultures outwardly tout a faith-based and employee-centric environment (i.e. Chick-fil-A) and others you might be hard-pressed to witness Christian behavior. How have you demonstrated your faith in various cultures?
• How do you define your leadership philosophy and what role does your Catholic faith play in it?
• Why do you feel we, as Catholics, have a responsibility to impact our workplace culture, or even change it?
• Tell me about a time when your personal integrity was called into question and how you were able to demonstrate the leadership courage to overcome the obstacle.
• Thousands of leadership books have been written about becoming a better leader.  Far fewer focus on being a Christian leader (God is my CEO, The Bible on Leadership, to name a few).  What resources do you use to hone your Christian leadership principles?
• We hear a lot about the changing workforce needs with now five generations in the workplace.  The onset of Facebook, Linked In, Twitter, etc. clearly demonstrate the need people have for “connection,” perhaps due to a loss of that connection given the demise of so many families and far fewer people active in their church.  How can we as Catholic leaders create deeper relationships in the workplace and demonstrate the Joy we experience as Christians when engaging in the church?

The evening ended with enthusiastic applause and a number of inquiries about the next Catholic Ideas and Issues Forum, which will be held in early 2011 and focus on issues relevant to Catholic Young Adults.  The Forum is an important and necessary program which facilitates education and discussion about issues relevant to lay Catholics in a highly interactive format. This sort of discussion, often reserved for more academic settings, is strongly desired by large numbers of Catholics we have encountered who wish to bring topics of this nature into our parishes.

We hope you will listen to the enlightening recording of the evening’s discussion and share with your friends.

If you liked this feature, click on “Recommend” to share with your Facebook network.  And please share your thoughts on this article by submitting your comments below. – The Editors

Source URL: https://integratedcatholiclife.org/2010/09/catholic-responsibility-at-work/

---