This study examines the impact of religious and educational freedoms on prosperity. The system GMM model is applied by using the data of 45 lower-, middle-, and high-income countries from 2009 to 2018. The results show that religious and academic freedoms are positively and statistically significantly associated with prosperity.

It is revealed from the results that the lagged impact of both religious and education freedoms has a higher impact on prosperity than the current level of both variables. Interestingly, the interaction term between academic and religious freedom is also positive and statistically significant, indicating that their combined effect further increases prosperity. Further, the interaction term between government effectiveness and gross fixed capital formation is introduced. Its impact is positive and significant, indicating that capital investment positively affects prosperity in the case of higher government effectiveness.

This study uses gross fixed capital formation and trade openness as control variables and these variables have a positive impact on prosperity, but the impact of trade openness on prosperity is insignificant. Thus, this study recommends religious and education freedom to achieve prosperity, especially in low-income countries that are already lagging. More.

As organizations seek to keep workforces healthy and productive, an area needing more attention – spiritual health

A new initiative from McKinsey & Co. identifies spiritual health as one of four interconnected components of overall health.

The McKinsey Health Institute’s report last month, The secret to great health? Escaping the healthcare matrix, found that healthcare systems focus almost entirely on physical health, with more than 90% money spent on healthcare going toward treating physical disease or physical symptoms. However, most people consider that mental, social, and spiritual health are as important as physical health and that they are deeply interconnected.

Significantly, McKinsey goes beyond the World Health Organization’s definition of health, which includes physical, mental and social, but not spiritual* health.

In a recent survey of 19,000 people across 19 countries, McKinsey reports that more than 8-in-10 people said that their mental health was as important to them as their physical health. Likewise, the majority also said that spiritual and social health were “extremely” or “very important” to them. And this was not a function of the socio-economic position of a country. These views were shared across high-, middle-, and low-income countries.

Indeed, as organizations seek to keep workforces healthy and productive, an area needing more attention is spiritual health.

In our Corporate Religious Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) Index, we include whether companies specifically provide for employees’ spiritual health either through corporate chaplains or some other means. Among companies competing the survey in 2022, the majority did. However, these companies self-selected into the benchmarking program, so we do not know what many other companies are doing in this area. We suspect not a lot.

To see more about the McKinsey Health Institute, click here. To read the full report, click here.

Join Catholic University’s Busch School of Business, the Institute for Human Ecology, and the Center for Religious Liberty for a seminar examining the focus on diversity and equity in today’s corporate world, by EEOC Commissioner Andrea Lucas.

This in-depth discussion will consider the legal risks that may accompany corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, as well as shed light on common blind spots employers may have in this area.

Commissioner Lucas’s significant experience counseling employers combined with her work at the EEOC gives her unique insight into the practical and legal implications of the development and implementation of these programs, as well as the potential for DEI to conflict with an employer’s legal obligations under Title VII and other employment discrimination statutes.

See Commissioner Lucas’ keynote address at our year’s Faith@Work ERG Conference below, and read her transcript and watch the Q&A here.

By Brian Grim

On Friday, I had the honor of participating in the White House celebration of National Religious Freedom Day. It was the first time the celebration was combined with the naturalization of new US citizens at the White House.

The celebration coincided with the annual proclamation of Religious Freedom Day by President Joe Biden, who said, “Faith has sustained me throughout my life. For me and for so many others, it serves as a reminder of both our collective purpose and potential in the world. But for far too many people within our borders and beyond, practicing their faith still means facing fear and persecution. Today, let us recommit ourselves to ending this hate. And let us work together to ensure that people of all religions — and no religion — are treated with equal dignity and respect.”

On a personal note, Second Gentleman of the United States, Doug Emhoff, said, “Today is National Religious Freedom Day – and we know here in America that religious freedom is a core, transformative democratic principle and it sets our nation apart from the days of its very founding and continues now to forge our unique identities as Americans. I’m the descendant of people who came here a long time ago seeking freedom from religious persecution and today am the first Jewish spouse of an American President or Vice President and know first hand the powerful importance of religious freedom in our society.”

The event welcomed 13 new citizens from 13 different countries, some seeking greater religious freedom. These included teachers, aid workers, economists, soccer coaches, lawyers, moms, dads, many church going, temple attending or involved with their local mosque, now all US citizens.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ur M. Jaddou issued the oath of allegiance, mentioning how only in America could the daughter of a father from Iraq and a mother from Mexico rise to such a position.

Director Jaddou went on to present the annual “Outstanding Americans by Choice” award to Rev. Eugene Cho, President and CEO of Bread for the World, a Christian organization dedicated to ending hunger in the United States and the world. Rev. Cho emigrated from South Korea to the US with his family, who were originally from North Korea.

Melissa Rogers, Special Assistant to the President and Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, delivered the keynote address. She shared about the various ways the administration is protecting religious freedom, including having established the Protecting Places of Worship Interagency Policy Committee last January, and implementing the largest-ever increase in funding for the physical security of non-profits — including churches, gurdwaras, mosques, synagogues, temples, and other houses of worship.

Melissa Rogers was previously senior counsel for the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty.

Also in attendance were two US Ambassadors for International Religious Freedom, Democrat Rashad Hussain and Republican Sam Brownback. Amb. Hussain is the current ambassador in the Biden Administration and he is the first Muslim American to hold the post. Sam Brownback held the post under the Trump Administration and currently co-chairs the IRF Summit with Democrat Katrina Lantos Swett.

Others in attendance included Adam Nicholas Phillips, a senior leader in the Biden-Harris Administration on local, community and Faith-based engagement at USAID. Previously he was a pastor in Portland, Oregon.

New U.S. citizens wave American flags following taking the Oath of Allegiance to become U.S. citizens during a naturalization ceremony at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on Friday, with Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff on National Religious Freedom Day. pic.twitter.com/V6crX5RWCh

— Al Drago (@Al_Drago) January 13, 2023

I could feel the optimism, hope, and pride in the room as we welcomed 15 of our nation’s newest citizens.

To the new Americans I met today: your traditions, ideas, and beliefs will only make our nation stronger. pic.twitter.com/8A4Vyt2CDa

— Douglas Emhoff (@SecondGentleman) January 14, 2023

By Brian Grim

Diversity is seen merely as a political agenda by some. One reason is that it has largely excluded religion, but that is changing.

See the recent article published by the nation’s leading human resource organization, SHRM: Are Your DE&I Efforts Missing This One Critical Component? … FAITH …| By Denise Yohn – a brand leadership expert, keynote speaker and best-selling author of books such as Fusion (Nicholas Brealey, 2018) and What Great Brands Do (Jossey-Bass, 2014).

Yohn writes, “If you want employees to bring their whole selves to work—as most companies say they do—it’s important to acknowledge that faith is an essential part of many people’s identity…”

Worth a read …

By Brian Grim, RFBF President

Malcolm Gladwell’s Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, written two decades before the covid pandemic, talked about how social change follows a similar pattern as epidemics. If he were writing the same book today, he might use China’s zero-covid policy that isolated its 1.4 billion people for nearly three years as the tipping point for the world to abandon authoritarian regimes as trusted supply chain partners.

Gladwell’s argument focused on three elements that create a “tipping point” – the point at which everything seemed an uphill struggle until suddenly the peak was reached and everything shifted into downhill mode. The elements are The Law of the Few, The Stickiness Factor, and The Power of Context.

For religious freedom, all three elements are converging in 2023. Let me give examples of each that I’ve seen in the lead up to 2023.

The Law of The Few

The first element in reaching a tipping point is that a few socially gifted people share knowledge, connect with social networks, and sell the idea.

In October 2022, Pat Gelsinger, the CEO of the Intel Corporation, urged corporations to place more emphasis on facilitating safe spaces for religion at work during Stanford University’s “The Role of Faith in Business in Silicon Valley” conference at the Rock Center.

While the event may not have made national headlines, Gelsinger’s ideas are contagious and leading other leaders to also speak out.

For example, when Gelsinger received the 2021 Global Business & Interfaith Peace Gold Medal from the Religious Freedom & Business Foundation for his enthusiastic support for religiously inclusive workplaces, his acceptance speech triggered another top corporate leader to respond. John Tyson, chairman of Arkansas-based Tyson Foods, to also spoke out on the importance of faith-friendly workplaces, referencing Pat Gelsinger.

In December 2022, I was in Silicon Valley for PayPal’s Interfaith Fair and Equinix’s Interfaith Holiday Luncheon and saw how this movement is spreading among top leaders and top companies.

Beyond companies, it is now even being argued for in influential business publications, including the Harvard Business Review in September 2022 by the influencer Simran Jeet Singh. And just yesterday in the nation’s premier human resource organization’s publication SHRM Executive Network: Are Your DE&I Efforts Missing This One Critical Component? – Faith, by brand expert Denise Lee Yohn.

The Stickiness Factor

The second element of a tipping point is that there is a quality that compels people to pay close, sustained attention to a product, concept, or idea. There is a change in the message that makes it more contagious or memorable.

For decades, religious freedom was something that was largely the providence of lawyers and court battles, everything from fights over zoning restrictions and grooming regulations to hot-button culture war issues that continue to be litigated up to the Supreme Court level.

However, the embrace of workplace religious freedom is a complete change in the message. It means that religious freedom is not just an issue for the few who are aggrieved but for absolutely everyone. From the Atheist to the Adventist and the member of Zion Baptist to the Zoroastrian, everyone has a stake in being able to bring their whole authentic self to work – faith/belief and all.

This is a paradigm shift – workplace “freedom of religion and belief” is a matter of consensus rather than contention. The consensus can be seen in that this is not just a Silicon Valley idea, but one being embraced by wide range of industries participating in the Corporate Religious Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) Index: retailers, airlines, financial institutions, manufacturers, insurers, defense contractors, and consulting groups.

Workplace religious freedom for all is a sticky idea because it does not make sense for people to check their faith — what for many is their deepest source of inspiration — at the door when they come to work. That’s a bad business idea.

The Power of Context

The Power of Context refers to the environment: if the historical moment is not right, then the tipping point will not likely take place.

I believe that the context is ripe. Corporations in the United States have been focusing on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) for decades, largely omitting religion and instead focusing on other important issues including race, gender, sexual orientation, abilities, age and even family, as our 2020 REDI Index report showed.

While the seeming omission of religion gives fuel to detractors who dismiss corporate diversity programs as nothing but a woke agenda, the DEI movement provides a context into which workplace religious freedom for all can naturally grow and be accepted.

And as mentioned already, the consensus that religion should be included is moving across industries, not just among those in Silicon Valley. This context not only allows religious freedom to be embraced in workplace, it means that millions of people are able to be involved in building religious freedom right in their own work environments.

Therefore, religious freedom is no longer defined as something fought about in courts and culture wars, but something that every person can work to build with colleagues of all faiths and beliefs for everyone’s benefit.

I expect 2023 to be a tipping point not just for freedom of religion and belief in the workplace but for such religious freedom across the country because where big business goes, society follows. And so does the world.

In case you missed them, have a look at RFBF’s top 10 most-read stories from 2022. Stay tuned for an exciting 2023 of advancing freedom of religion and belief for all in and through business.

Wishing a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and productive New Year to all!

Brian Grim
RFBF President

#1 Pune, India: RFBF and India’s MIT World Peace University sign agreement to study socio-economic impact of religion and religious pluralism in India

#2 Pivotal Finding: 80% of business leaders say it’s “good for company culture” to encourage employees to be open about their faith, according to a new Deseret News/HarrisX nationally representative poll

#3 Get it Done “by/vs” Building the Relationship? Where do you fall on the “by/vs” spectrum?

#4 Two EEOC Commissioners to Share Expertise on Combating Anti-Semitism in the Workplace

#5 Vocation of the Business Leader: From the Vatican to American Airlines, seeing the dignity of human work as a “community of people”

#6 Religious diversity: Corporate obstacle? Or asset? US companies embrace religious diversity as good for people and for business

#7 Company On Nasdaq With Purpose To Honor God: Did you know that Coca-Cola Consolidated’s leading purpose is to honor God in all they do?

#8 American Airlines CCO & G100 Founder To Receive Top Awards: 2022 Global Business & Interfaith Peace Awards

#9 Severely Restricting Religious Freedom Predicts War: Russia, perpetrating war in Ukraine, has the highest restrictions on religious freedom in Europe, 4th highest in world

#10 Religious Freedom & Peace: Strengthen our democracy by protecting religious freedom

By Brian Grim

On Wednesday I had the honor of speaking at the Annual Meeting of GDIT’s interfaith employee resource group Faith and H.O.P.E. I came away seeing how their exercise of workplace religious freedom for all is a model both for the faithful in society as well as for society itself.

Rather than religion being a source of disagreement and conflict – as it can be at times – I had the opportunity to meet people from across the faith and belief spectrum coming together in HOPE: Honesty, Optimism, Prayer, and Encouragement.

This year, GDIT’s Faith and HOPE ERG has experienced double digit growth in members, hosted dozens of events and meetings, all with the mission to:

“promote understanding of the hope and resources that can be found through faith in God or a higher power or philosophical system, provide employees with a network of like-minded peers, address questions from those interested in learning more, and pray for GDIT’s success in its work and mission.”

It is indeed hopeful to see that in today’s best workplaces there is free space for such open dialogue and religious engagement. It is a great example of what we refer to as Covenantal Pluralism. If you’re not familiar with the concept, check out the short video below. Have HOPE!

Covenantal Pluralism from Religious Freedom & Business Foundation on Vimeo.

1st-ever PayPal Interfaith Fair

By Brian Grim

PayPal’s interfaith employee resource group (ERG) ‘Believe’ hosted Silicon Valley’s first-ever Interfaith Fair at their global headquarters in San Jose, California, on Thursday. Believe leads Becky Pomerleau and Neetu Dhaliwal brought Believe members from across the country to participate, including John Huân Vũ and Jessica Aycock among many others! During the Fair, hundreds of PayPal team members visited the interactive faith booths (pictured above).

The Interfaith Fair was kicked off with virtual comments by PayPal CEO Dan Schulman, who was in Europe. Schulman emphasized the central place faith and belief has in the company’s overall diversity commitments.

Following Schulman’s welcome, an inter-company, interfaith panel moderated by PayPal’s Neetu Dhaliwal discussed the opportunities and challenges for bringing their whole selves, faith and all, to work. Discussants included Salesforce Vice President Randhir Kalsi, Amazon’s Mimi Chan, Equinix’s Husain Husna, and Intel’s Rajesh Yawantikar.

The Fair culminated with an executive Fireside Chat on the Value of Faith that I had the honor to participate in with PayPal Board member Debbie Messemer, moderated by Ellen Hayes, Vice President, Global Communities, Culture, and Change Communications at PayPal (pictured L-R below).

On Friday, as a follow-up to PayPal’s Interfaith Fair, Equinix’s FaithConnect ERG founded by Marsie Sweetland invited everyone to their Redwood City headquarters on Friday for the first annual interfaith Holiday Luncheon, also attended by Bruce Owen, Equinix’s Vice President of Employee & Community Impact, and others including Ismael Rivera.

At the Equinix luncheon, together with Kimberly Moses of ChaplainCare (pictured below right with Marsie Sweetland), I shared about the importance of recognizing the holidays of all religious communities of employees in a company.

It’s amazing to see the synergy between the religiously inclusive activities across companies in Silicon Valley, with the actions of one company stimulating similar and innovative activities in others. What wonderful examples of faith and hope in this holiday season!

Religious Repression Yields Economic Stagnation – as evidenced by countries on US State Department Countries of Concern list

by Brian Grim

The US State Department just released the latest Countries of Particular Concern (CPC) list for egregious violations of religious freedom. The list includes the world’s second largest economy, the People’s Republic of China, which has seen a marked economic downturn coinciding with the draconian zero-covid policy that has put hundreds of millions of residents in a series of lockdowns.

The Chinese Communist Party’s total population control — now easing due to a series of public protests the likes of which have not been not seen since the government brutally put down the 1989 Tiananmen demonstrations — mirrors policies used to control religious populations, such as their detention of an estimated one million Uyghur and other Muslims in the western Xinjiang region.

Such policies are drawing not only sanctions but driving global businesses to move their operations and supply chains elsewhere for freer, less state-controlled markets. (Also see my previous analysis, China’s Economic Secret Under Threat.)

Religious repression is also associated with market liabilities in Russia, Iran, North Korea, and Myanmar, all of which continue to be under heavy sanctions for hostile actions, many involving religiously repressive or assertive policies, such as Russia’s Orthodox Church justifying on religious grounds Putin’s war of aggression on Ukraine, as I’ve previously written.

As shown in our Cambridge University Press book, The Price of Freedom Denied, a lack of religious freedom in a country results in violent religious persecution and conflict. Furthering that research, our article “Is Religious Freedom Good for Business?” shows that religious hostilities and restrictions create climates that can drive away local and foreign investment, undermine sustainable development, and disrupt huge sectors of economies.

If you’d like to help address these issues, there’s something you can help us with. Please nominate business leaders you know (or know about) who are working to advance cultures of interfaith understanding, religious freedom (broadly defined), and peace for our 2023 Global Business & Interfaith Peace Awards. More information is here.

The Awards will be presented next September in India, part of our covenantal pluralism initiative devoted to interfaith understanding and peace in the world’s largest democracy.