If ‘work is the new religion,’ does society lose out?
No longer just somewhere to make a living, work has become a place to find purpose, and, yes, even transcendence. But what happens when the balance of life skews so heavily toward the workplace? The Monitor’s Erika Page spoke recently with sociologist Carolyn Chen, author of “Work Pray Code: When Work Becomes Religion in Silicon Valley,” to find out.
How did your thinking on this topic evolve?
I was interested in looking at where we see religion in secular spaces. This project started by studying yoga in studios and interviewing yoga practitioners. They would say, “Well, I practice yoga after a long day of work. It helps me
