In 1911 Frederick Winslow Taylor published a book, "The Principals of Scientific Management". Neither Taylor nor his book are household names, yet "Taylorism" has had a major influence on how we see ourselves. If "Darwinism" robbed us of the image of God and left us merely as clever animals, "Taylorism" helped turn us into complex machines.
Taylor, an engineer with the Midvale Steel Company in Philadelphia, was one of the first to use time-and-motion studies in order to derive the maximum output from the company's workers for the minimum cost. He promoted the practices of piecework and assembly-line production. The psychological and social well-being of workers played no part in his calculations.
Since Taylor's time, many others have followed him in developing methods to increase productivity and efficiency. The harsher aspects of his theories have been toned down over the years, partly because managers now recognise that the human machine works better with adequate periods of rest and refreshment.
At the same time, the concept of endlessly increasing productivity and efficiency have become so ingrained in our thinking that they are applied to all areas of life, not just the factory assembly line. Many people pride themselves on being able to do two or even three things at once, not just at work but all the time. Children are taught that "wasting time" is unacceptable, and even their play is carefully structured to ensure that their time is well spent and productive.
Occupations which do not "produce" anything tangible, such as nursing and teaching, are being made to demonstrate their productivity by ever-increasing loads of paper work. The result is often not better teaching and nursing but falling morale amongst dedicated teachers and nurses.
Even our leisure time is scrutinized, to see how we might use it more productively. The "leisure industry" may be an oxymoron, but it is also big business. Advertisers encourage us to use every moment of our spare time to engage in sporting and educational activities, expensive entertainments and travel. Shopping is promoted as a recreational activity. All of these help to boost productivity in many different areas of the economy.
Artificial lighting and the use of technology that never sleeps are breaking down the distinction between day and night, activity and rest. The rhythm of life built into creation is becoming distorted. The concept of the sabbath rest is being lost altogether.
By "sabbath rest" I don't mean some sort of legalistic or moralistic "sabbath keeping" with rules about what activities are acceptable. I'm not buying into the debate about Sunday trading. What is important is the concept behind the sabbath, the reasons for living out a cycle of six days of labour followed by a seventh day of rest.
As Jewish writer Abraham Heshel has pointed out, the first thing that God set aside as holy was not a place or a book or a person but a day (Genesis 2.3) On the seventh day of creation, God rested and declared that day holy. Why did he rest? Surely it was not that he was tired, for an all-powerful God needs no rest. Genesis suggests that he rested (or ceased from his work) in order to enjoy what he had made.
So when we set aside a day of rest (be it Sunday or some other day) we do it not merely to refresh our minds and bodies. We are also imitating God, taking the opportunity to reflect on the work we have been doing and to enjoy the result. Without such pauses for reflection, we begin to work mindlessly and without purpose, like machines, never really knowing why we do what we do.
The seventh day rest is also a time to reflect on God's goodness and provision for us. It's a way of expressing our trust in him, a statement of our belief that it is not our efforts that keep us supplied with what we need but God's generosity. God is in control. Our world will not fall apart if we do not use every moment in efficient activity.
The seventh day rest is a time to practice contentment, to resist covetousness. It flies in the face of the fear and greed which lie behind the striving for greater productivity. If we live without pausing, we have no time to enjoy the goods which we've accumulated. We need to deliberately set aside time to celebrate and play.
Above all, the seventh day is a time to make a space to worship, unhindered by timetables and deadlines. For some people, making that space in the week means putting in extra effort in the days before. It may mean considerable sacrifice in terms of career and financial rewards. Those who work in essential services may need to find their own "seventh day".
For all of us, setting aside the seventh day means coming to worship prepared and unencumbered. To slot worship into our diaries as though it were simply another activity to be got through and crossed off misses the whole point of the sabbath rest.
We shouldn't underestimate the impact of gathering together for worship. In a world that works twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, going to church on Sunday is a pretty radical thing to do. It's a declaration that we do not value what the world values.
As Christians drive past their neighbours' homes each Sunday, they are ignoring the virtues of having a clean car, a tidy house or a well-tended garden. They are telling those who are busy buying and selling that there is something more important in their life than making money or spending it. They are telling those who are still sleeping that worshipping God means more to them than physical inactivity after a tiring week.
During the few hours that Christians spend in worship together, very little is consumed. Except for the ministry given and received, no work is done. No-one gets paid. (Clergy stipends are intended to free people who serve in the church from the need to earn an income, rather than paying for services rendered.) In church, no-one bothers to monitor the congregation's productivity, efficiency or time-management techniques.
From a worldly point of view, gathering for worship one day in every seven is a complete waste of time. Nothing is produced or sold, no-one comes away fitter or richer or better qualified. The human machine is needlessly idle.
From God's point of view, the seventh day rest is so important that he commands his people to keep it. This is no minor legal precept - it ranks with "Do not murder" and "Do not commit adultery" as one of the ten great commandments. How we go about keeping the command to remember the sabbath and keep it holy is a matter for personal conscience, but we can hardly ignore it.
As Christians we are freed from law-keeping and live by grace. We mustn't create rules for each other about how the seventh day ought to be observed. Jesus rejected the Pharisees legalistic interpretation of the sabbath, with all its petty rules and lack of compassion. The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath, he said.
The seventh day rest is an appealing picture of God's grace, a gift given to humankind for our own well being. It serves to remind us that we are not efficient machines but creatures made in the image of God. In an age in love with its own busyness, we need that reminder.
Stella Budrikis