10 for 10: Voting Vision not Division | On Labor

In this inaugural episode of "10 for 10: Voting Vision Not Division," Rev. Dr. George Mason is joined by Rabbi Nancy Kasten and Mara Richards Bim to explore the significance of labor through the lens of faith. As we reflect on Labor Day, the discussion delves into how religious traditions emphasize the dignity of work, the necessity of rest, and the importance of fair labor practices. This episode challenges listeners to think critically about how their beliefs can shape their voting decisions on issues related to labor and employment. Join us as we kick off this series with a conversation that invites you to see voting as a powerful way to live out your values and contribute to a just and compassionate society.

What is 10 for 10: Voting Vision not Division? Starting on September 2, 2024 and continuing every Monday for ten weeks through November 4, Faith Commons is offering ten 10-minute reflections on topics related to the upcoming election through the lens of religion. Our premise is that religion should be used to unite people and groups of people rather than to divide them, and that the founders of our country shared our view.

Watch the video, here.

George Mason (00:24):

Welcome to 10 for 10 Voting Vision, not Division. Over the next few weeks, my colleagues and I at Faith Commons will host a series of these conversations in which we will address 10 topics of interest with regard to the upcoming election. We'll try to do that in 10 minutes each and do it over 10 weeks as we prepare for the election at Faith Commons. We believe that religion and politics do in fact go together, but how they go together is vitally important. Faith is a way of envisioning the world, and politics is one way of making that vision a reality. We all know that religion and politics both can bring people together where they can drive them apart. We obviously believe that religion should bring people together and that our politics should reflect that as well, that we should vote. The way we pray that is that everyone be included in valued, that all means all, and that we should love our neighbor as ourselves and not operate or behave out of fear of others. And so here we are with this first episode. I'm joined by my colleagues, rabbi Nancy Caston and Mara Richards Bim. And we are Faith Commons. And we'll begin to address these subjects today Is Labor Day our first one? And so coinciding with that, our theme is, of course, labor or work. And Nancy will begin by addressing that from her Jewish faith tradition. And Mara will respond and we'll conclude in just a moment. So let's begin. Nancy <laugh>.

Nancy Kasten (02:27):

Well, you know, we see the Jewish approach to work from the very beginning in the Book of Exodus, where we read in chapter 26 Days Shall You Labor and Do All Your Work. But the seventh Day is a Sabbath of the Lord your God. You shall not do any work, you, your son or daughter, your male or female slaves, or your cattle, or the stranger who is within your settlements for in six days, the Lord made heaven and earth and sea and all that is in them. And God rested on the seventh day. So in our tradition, and of course, other traditions, Christianity, Islam, and others, adopted this idea that it is commanded of us to work and it is also commanded to rest, to refrain from work. And that's how we bring God into the world. All manner of work from the most menial to the most elevated is necessary to perpetuate and sustain God's creation.

Nancy Kasten (03:37):

And the people, and even the animals who do that work, must be cared for and given time to rest from their labor. Now, not every culture believed that the Greeks and the Romans looked down on labor and saw freedom from work as a right of rank and privilege. And we seek both in what we see in America today. We both have the idea that the American dream is that if you work hard enough, you will succeed. We also have the idea that monetary compensation is the measure of that success. And if you don't work hard somehow, then you will fail and you'll have no one to blame but yourself. Now, this idea that you're in it for yourself is really not part of either our faith tradition or even the founding of America and the way America came into being. Certainly my grandparents came to this country for opportunity.

Nancy Kasten (04:41):

They didn't come because they had some, they were, they were not landed gentry arriving on these shores. Policy when it comes to labor has two purposes. One is to protect workers to give, to make sure that they are healthy and safe. So those include policies that have to do with healthcare and retirement benefits and taxes and things like that. Other kinds of policy enable workers to do their work. That includes being able to live close to where you work, to get there with transportation, to have affordable childcare. So these aspects of policy that are addressed through our politics are very important in how we view work and how people see themselves as workers in our society. So if we are people of faith, then we must keep in mind that our tradition requires us to work, also requires us to rest and to protect the ability to work and to rest for others a s well.

George Mason (05:48):

Wonderful. Mara?

Mara Richards Bim (05:50):

Yeah. So, um, as a United Methodist, um, the, um, the rights of workers has been embedded in our tradition since John Wesley, our founder. Um, he was very concerned both with, um, the conditions under which people labored. Um, and also he was, um, against slavery, um, which not all traditions were, um, when he was around in the 17 hundreds. And that, uh, focus on the rights of workers was really embedded in, um, our social practices. In 1908, the precursor to the United Methodist Church was the Methodist Episcopal Church, and they issued a social creed. It was the first denomination to do so. And so it was actually in response to the, um, labor practices in the industrial revolution here. And so it called for things like the abolition of child labor. It called for, um, safer, um, healthier working conditions. It called for time off for rest.

Mara Richards Bim (06:53):

It also said that every industry should pay workers the maximum possible for that industry. And so, so wages were also a piece of that. And so, you know, today as United Methodists, um, we just had a general conference back in May and our new, um, social principles that were adopted include things like, you know, fair labor practices, living wage, um, and also dignity in work that, um, that that work is meaningful for people, that people are, are lifted up. You know, we see everyone as the image of God and everyone is valued and, and worth full of worth. And so, um, that's there. But also to what you said, Nancy, there is also an emphasis on agriculture and the animals, uh, used in agriculture are to be given rest. That the land is to be given rest, that farmers are to use sustainable practices in farming.

Mara Richards Bim (07:53):

And then there is a call in the social principles on consumers to really, um, think about all those things as we, uh, consume products and, you know, fair, fair practices for everyone involved. And so, um, as a Methodist, when I go to the ballot box, I have to keep, um, all of those social principles in mind. Um, uh, it's how we, we, we live, we live by, um, three rules. The first is do no harm, the second is do good. And the third is to attend to the ordinances of God. And we don't think we can do good until we've first done no harm. And so that's what I'll be thinking about when I go to vote.

George Mason (08:37):

Well, we hope you've heard some things from these two traditions of faith that help you think through, uh, these policy matters that will help inform your vote. Faith should inform your vote. Uh, and what we've heard today, I, I think, is a kind of faith that doesn't just default to the red tooth and claw world of competition where there are winners and losers all the time, but rather draws people together in a great enterprise of work and labor, uh, to make creation what God intends it to be. So carry that with you on November 5th or whenever you vote, but do vote mm-Hmm, <affirmative> and make sure by the way that you are registered to vote. Well, let me just say that this is our first episode. We hope you've enjoyed it Next week because school has started, we're gonna be talking about education. But for now, I'm George Mason with Rabbi Nancy Kasten and Mara Richards Bim. Have a good day.