CHRISTIAN BREAKING NEWS: You Can Pray at Your Desk Now? New Federal Rule on Religious Freedom
CHRISTIAN BREAKING NEWS: You Can Pray at Your Desk Now? New Federal Rule on Religious Freedom
Hi everyone,
Can federal employees now pray at their desks or share their faith at work? YES, under new 2025 guidance from the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM), religious expression in government employment is now PROTECTED like never before!
This policy update, supported by Title VII and the Supreme Court’s judgment in Groff v. DeJoy, allows:
Prayer breaks during work.
Religious items on your desk.
Sharing your faith, respectfully.
Flexible working hours for faith observance.
Whether you’re a Christian, Muslim, Jew, or follow any other faith, your religious right at work just got stronger.
QUICK REMINDER: Before we continue, please share this with friends who work in government or care about religious freedom.
In July 2025, the US Office of Personnel Management issued new guidance reinforcing religious liberty protection for federal employees.
Federal agencies are encouraged to grant reasonable accommodation for religious practices, such as telework, flexible scheduling, or religious comp time, to ensure that employees are not forced to choose between their faith and their job.
The guidance is based on Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and is supported by the Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling Groff v. DeJoy, which raised the “undue hardship” threshold for denying accommodation.
Federal employees are allowed to display religious items (e.g., a Bible, a mezuzah, or a crucifix), join in off-duty prayer groups, and even engage co-workers in faith discussions, including persuasion, as long as the behavior is respectful and stops when requested. Refusing to interact is not grounds for disciplinary action.
Agencies should allow telework or flexible hours to accommodate religious obligations such as prayers, fasting, Sabbath observance, or holidays—as long as it does not cause significant costs or disruptions. This policy recognizes religious accommodation as a key reason for overriding full-time in-office mandates.
Managers and supervisors are not allowed to selectively prohibit specific religions or religious expressions. They may implement time, place, and manner restrictions, but not restrict content or religious viewpoint specifically.
This memo builds on longstanding policy, dating back to recommendations issued in 1997 and during the Clinton administration, which similarly emphasized protection for employee religious expression as long as it did not disrupt government operations.
The current administration’s shift marks a more proactive encouragement of faith-based expression in government settings, reflecting broader efforts—such as a February 2025 executive order—to combat perceived anti-Christian bias within federal institutions.
This guidance signals a renewed commitment to religious freedom within federal employment, encouraging policies that accommodate diverse faith needs while maintaining workplace efficiency and respect. It provides legal and administrative support for employees to practice and share their faith, while also limiting agencies’ ability to impose faith-based restrictions.
QUESTION: Do you support prayer rights in public workplaces? Is this a win for religious liberty? Let us know in the Comments section.
For Immediate Release
July 28, 2025
media@opm.gov
OPM Issues Guidance to Protect Religious Expression in the Federal Workplace
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued a
government-wide memorandum directing federal agencies to take affirmative steps to
protect religious expression in the workplace. The memo provides clear guidance to
ensure federal employees may express their religious beliefs through prayer, personal
items, group gatherings, and conversations without fear of discrimination or
retaliation.
The memo affirms longstanding constitutional and statutory protections for religious
expression and instructs agencies to review internal policies to ensure compliance with
the law and the Trump Administrationʼs broader commitment to restoring religious
liberty in government institutions.
“Federal employees should never have to choose between their faith and their career,”
Director Kupor said. “This guidance ensures the federal workplace is not just
compliant with the law but welcoming to Americans of all faiths. Under President
Trumpʼs leadership, we are restoring constitutional freedoms and making government
a place where people of faith are respected, not sidelined.”
The memo builds on OPMʼs July 16 guidance on reasonable accommodations for
religious purposes and provides illustrative examples of protected religious conduct. It
aligns with Executive Orders 14202 and 14291, which direct agencies to safeguard
religious liberty.
Protecting Religious Liberty: Employer & Employee Considerations
Employees
You may request religious accommodations via telework, flexible hours, or leave. You may wear or display religious items, pray, hold faith discussions, and invite others—respectfully and outside of work hours.
Supervisors/Agencies
Must engage in a good-faith process for accommodation requests, assess undue hardship per Groff standards, and avoid content-based restrictions or viewpoint discrimination.
Legal Standards Title VII guarantees free religious practice and mandates accommodation unless doing so imposes a substantial burden. First Amendment protections apply as well.
You Can Pray at Your Desk Now? New Federal Rule on Religious Freedom | Christian Breaking News!
You Can Pray at Your Desk Now? New Federal Rule on Religious Freedom | Christian Breaking News!