November 01, 2021
PC students meet to bridge Catholicism and the workplace
By Maeve Hickey ’21, ’22G
Catholics in the Marketplace, a new program offered by Campus Ministry, facilitates discussion about important topics in the business world, viewed through the lens of Catholic social thought. This series, first suggested by a Providence College School of Business student, is held in the Center for Catholic and Dominican Studies every other Thursday.
Matt Salomons ’23 (North Easton, Mass.) spoke about a faith and business program with Rev. Justin Bolger, O.P., chaplain and director of campus ministry. Salomons, a finance major with a theology minor, also participates in Peer Ministry and the Knights of Columbus. Last spring, he noticed there was no program that bridged Catholic theology to business, and he wanted to change that.
“When I heard that Father Justin Bolger was being made the new chaplain, I decided to approach him about this idea of a new faith and business ministry, with the intention of addressing work and family life, how political influence and laws relating to the economy can create morally tough situations and a whole bunch of topics,” said Salomons.
Father Bolger agreed that there was a need for a program like this with the number of business students enrolling at PC each year.
“Many of our students study business,” said Father Bolger. “At PC, we provide great professional training through the business school. We are also a Catholic and Dominican liberal arts school and as such we teach our students about what conduces to a happy life. I think we can provide more opportunities to think about how these two parts of our education intersect and about what it means to be a Catholic professional. This is a contribution to that effort.”
Rev. Thomas More Garrett, O.P., associate vice president and associate general counsel at PC, worked with Father Bolger to turn Salomons’ idea into a reality, and the Catholics in the Marketplace series was the result. Father Garrett also serves as a practitioner faculty member in the PCSB’s Department of Management and teaches courses in business law and financial markets and institutions. He explained why he thinks it is important to look at business topics through a Catholic lens.
“I sometimes think of life as something as a puzzle,” said Father Garrett. “The placement of several of those pieces are determined by choices individuals make throughout their careers. What we want, and what God wants for us, is the right sort of ‘fit’ that will lead to our happiness. The Catholic faith is something like a guidebook for making those pieces fit, especially when the connections are not obvious.”
Father Garrett and Dr. Ronald Jelinek, professor of marketing, coordinated a session early this semester. At the meeting, Father Garrett and Jelinek shared their knowledge while also encouraging students to contribute their own thoughts and opinions.
Salomons said, “Both Father Bolger and I thought that a regular discussion with people like Father Thomas More Garrett and Dr. Ron Jelinek would be an ingenious way to show students, particularly those interested in business and law, how to bring their Catholic faith into the workplace.”
Jelinek, a Catholic husband and father, has been teaching at Providence College for 17 years and has extensive work experience in the corporate world. He hopes to bring this expertise to the series.
Similarly, Father Garrett, in addition to being a resident Dominican, practiced law at a large firm for many years and worked briefly for the U.S. House of Representatives. He hopes that his previous career experience, along with his devotion to faith, will help facilitate conversation among the session members.
“Life is so compartmentalized that living a divided life can begin to feel natural,” said Father Garrett. “What I mean by ‘divided life’ is the adoption of subtle attitudes or behavior in the professional setting that are otherwise inconsistent with how a person thinks, acts, and believes in other settings. The opportunity to examine one’s career as part of an integral life as child of God should be one of the benefits of this group.”
Thursday’s session centered around an extremely current business topic – the work-from-home movement. While considering the moral significance of the work-from-home topic, there was back and forth between the students, Jelinek, and Father Garrett.
While students sat at the back tables of the CCDS enjoying Big Tony’s pizza, Father Garrett encouraged them to dig deeper into their initial thoughts, and with each comment managed to steer the discussion in different directions. The students felt comfortable enough to speak up and openly discuss their opinions.
The work-from-home dialogue began by questioning the reasons human beings work in the first place. The students’ initial thoughts focused on the notion that humans work to provide for themselves and their families. They commented on the material needs and other externals that can be earned through working.
Father Garrett pushed back on this assessment of work and brought the students’ attention to the book of Genesis. It was through the discussion of God’s first workers that Father Garrett was able to steer the students’ thought towards a new belief about the purpose of work – together with God, to develop your capacities through commitment and free will. Father Garrett explained that developing one’s capacities requires commitment, and work is a way human beings can prove and act on that commitment.
Through continuous discussion, Jelinek and Father Garrett helped broaden the students’ understanding of how Catholicism fits into the discussion of business and working from home specifically. Both the session facilitators, and the students, made connections to their own life and work experiences.
“We’re a Catholic college. In addition to the career preparedness and worldly success of our graduates, I believe we should care at least as much about their spiritual health. As a faculty member, I believe that means considering what I am being called to do to support my students’ faith development,” said Jelinek.