Worship in Washington: Workplace Revival
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Some people shop during their lunch break. Some read their favorite book, surf the Internet, or visit with friends. But some are choosing to worship the Lord, and many of those who spend their lunch hour praising, praying and singing are not going to church. They prefer to worship where they work.
Each week, hundreds of government workers have been spending their lunch hour in these Washington worship services.
Although some might think holding a religious service on federal property would be a violation of separation of church and state, the Constitution itself permits such gatherings.
"The First Amendment affirmatively protects these federal employees to engage in prayer, religious speech, and Bible studies at the workplace," explained Jay Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice.
In 1997, President Clinton presented the Workplace Religion Policy. That policy allows for full-scale worship services to take place in federal buildings as long as they are truly voluntary.
"If rooms or facilities are made available to other employee groups, they cannot be denied to a Christian prayer group simply because their meeting begins with a prayer and includes religious discussions," said Sekulow.
Reverend Matthew Watley says he was called to move beyond the walls of church and reach out to federal employees. So the day before the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Watley began to hold his "Power Lunch" services.
"I'm in Washington D.C., and in D.C., federal employees are the major workforce," he said.
While many federal offices have been holding prayer meetings and services for years, Watley feels now is an especially important time for these workers to turn to God.
"Because of the tragedy, there are persons who are seeking answers," Watley said. "Because, in the federal government, they're actually the ones that are dealing with the nuts and bolts of this. They're helping families, they're dealing with the war effort, and on so many levels, people are looking for questions and answers for their own sanity and for their own peace of mind."
But some critics argue that allowing revival meetings in federal facilities may lead to conflict in the workplace. Those who attend the services disagree. "My supervisor has been supportive and allowing me to come down on Wednesdays," said Marsha Garvin.
Sekulow says the free exercise of religion is not a workplace conflict as long as the meetings are voluntary. "You can't require employees to participate. But as long as there's not a requirement in participation, having a Bible study or prayer meeting at the federal workplace is not only constitutionally protected, it's taking place from the very tops of our government all the way down to those who are in the field."
President Bush has been vocal about his faith since his presidential election campaign. And it is no secret that Attorney General John Ashcroft holds daily devotional meetings.
So if government workers and leaders are allowed to use federal property to worship God, that begs the question, "Why aren't school children allowed to pray?"
"Students have the right to pray on campus, it's just that it can't be organized by the state or the government involved. You can't have a board of education dictating the contents of a student’s prayer or requiring students to pray," Sekulow said.
But many, including Rev. Watley, believe that also will be changing in light of the events of September 11. The House of Representatives recently passed a non-binding resolution that would allow school children time to pray during this time of national crisis.
"I think that we will see the pendulum swing back to the understanding that our children have just as much right to express our spirituality as we do as adults," Watley said.
But for now, Rev. Watley and his Power Lunch parishioners are comfortable with where they meet, and with praising God during their workday.
Now he hopes that America as a whole will turn from secular to spiritual, just like the federal employees who worship over lunch. "We've tried going the secular route, we've tried to sort of strip ourselves, and we've seen that that does not lead to a better place for our country or as individuals."