It's rude to have beliefs and act on them.
I don't really see a prayer meeting as "acting on beliefs". If he gave his coat to someone who had none, or gave his food to the hungry, that might be acting on his beliefs. The meetings are more a way of waving the combination of position and belief in the faces of his subordinates, and yes, I think that rude.
it wouldn't occur to you that it's rude for you to impose your anti-religious beliefs on him
I'm not imposing anything on him. I'm just asking him to keep his private beliefs in his private life, just as I do. I would never dream of holding atheist discussion sessions in a workplace I was in charge of. It would be offensive, divisive, and rude.
As far as management goes, I think it's pretty clear that, while nobody is required to attend the meetings, the meetings will inevitably create the perception that the people who attend the meetings are an inner circle within the Department, and will have preferential access and favor from the boss. That may very well be more than just perception, but the perception is enough to make the practice divisive and an impediment to the smooth functioning of the office.
I don't care if he prays continuously from the moment he rises to the moment he walks in the office door, but from the moment he walks in that door, he should be concerned solely with professional conduct.
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Do you doubt, even for a moment, that at least one person in that prayer session every day does not believe a word of it, and is there purely to suck up to the boss? |
