Bryan Fowler – ‘Spiritual and Economic Needs of Autistic Workers’

As a corporate chaplain, I am daily inundated with the spiritual and emotional challenges of the workplace. This led me to read heavily into the Faith at Work (FAW) movement which emerged in the 21st century to bridge the gap between our economic and spiritual lives. Through my studies, I found that this movement speaks almost exclusively to one segment of the workforce, white-collar professionals, while leaving other large portions out. My research focuses on the spiritual and economic needs of autistic workers with a keen interest in seeing all people as made in the image of God and for the purpose of flourishing. Integrating autism into the FAW conversation both creates a more inclusive theological anthropology and imparts a greater vision of God’s beauty, design, and purpose for all of humanity and for our work.