199 - Christians in Business

Christians in Business
By Earl F. Palmer

"New College Berkeley" is very young as institutions go, but already it has had a far - reaching impact upon many church laity. Founded in 1976 as a school of graduatelevel Christian studies, the center has a trans - denominational flavor and a strong evangelical motivation at its core. New College set for itself a clear directive to relate biblical faith to the everyday life and work of lay people. A charter statement declared that "New College Berkeley" is committed to the view that God is concerned with the whole of life, "and a recent brochure notes that the school stresses the integration of faith and life, especially one's vocational/ professional life."

New College also sponsors special - focus weekend conferences. These events enable people from particular professional backgrounds to explore their own vocations in the light of biblical faith. For example, last February there was a conference on justice, co - sponsored with the Christian Legal Society. More than a hundred and fifty lawyers and law students were involved in that discussion. An earlier conference on "The Health Professional as Christ's Servant "was co - sponsored with the Christian Medical Society, with more than two hundred health professionals on hand.

Last March, New College arranged" A Conference for Christians in Business", asking the question: "What does it mean to be a Christian business person today?" Again, about one hundred and fifty business people attended this conference, held at the Berkeley Marina Marriott Inn. Speakers and seminar leaders were drawn together from a broad cross - section of disciplines and perspectives. The plenary addresses were given by Elizabeth Anker - Johnson, Vice President of General Motors; Os Guiness, theologian and writer from Oxford; David M. Beckmann, economist, the World Bank, Washington.

Seminars and plenary sessions were on a wide range of topics from Bible studies to the discussion of coping skills, family life for business people, business ethics, biblical perspectives on stewardship, women in business, the mission of business in the secular city, the challenge of facing the Christian business person in an age of hunger, and business, opportunities abroad as a means of service and witness.

Leadership for the weekend was varied and made up mostly of local business people. In addition to those mentioned, the conference enrolled Dr. Richard Benner, Professor of Business Administration, U.C. Berkeley; C. Davis Weyerhaeuser, of Tacoma, Washington; W. Ward Gasque, President of New College; Otto A. Bremer from U.C. Berkeley

Earl F. Palmer is the minister of the First Presbyterian Church, Berkeley, California. He has also served as pastor to students at the University Church of Seattle and as minister for the Union Church at Manila, the Philippine Islands.

200 - Christians in Business

Center for Research in Management. The earnestness and enthusiasm of the participants were so contageous that plans are already underway for a repeat of this conference next year.

A conversation I had with a businessman at this conference helped me to see how important this kind of event can be. He said to me that for the first time he was beginning to see the relationship between his Christian discipleship and his job. The whole effect upon him was startling and suggestive as he thought what it would mean for the world today if Christians recognized the connection between the two. Many others were having the same kind of experience.

Something else was happening there, too. Men and women discovered a network of love and support toward each other. It is this sense of shared mandate that makes it possible to take in and actually welcome the implications of the sovereign claims of Christ, the Lord of all of life.