I’ve worked at a plush restaurant for some time now. Yesterday the boss asked me to be the new cigarette girl. He’s really been good to me, and I feel very loyal to him. He says I’m the only current employee who can effectively take Sally’s place. If I don’t take the job, he’ll be forced to hire a new girl and let one of the others go.

“If she has worked at the restaurant for some time and is on such good terms with the manager, I think it would be easy for her to influence him. She could talk over the situation with the manager and tell him that it is against her convictions to sell cigarettes. If she is as important to him as an employee as he says she is, he will probably give the job to another girl.”

Marjean Gutzman, Age 17
Albuquerque, New Mexico

“The question that you pose is basically a question of your loyalty to your boss and employee friends as opposed to your loyalty to yourself and your Heavenly Father. Assume that you become the new cigarette girl. Your job requires that you make your merchandise as attractive as possible to the customer. If you decide to simply sell cigarettes passively, that is, wait for a person to summon you before asking him if he wants cigarettes, you will not be doing your job effectively. In other words, your job will be to convince people to purchase and smoke your cigarettes. First Corinthians 3:16 states: ‘Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?’ [1 Cor. 3:16] By encouraging people to destroy their bodies, you will be encouraging them to defile a temple of God; and thus you will be indirectly defiling a temple of the Lord. First Corinthians 3:17 continues; ‘If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.’ [1 Cor. 3:16] I submit that you have much to lose by taking the job and very little to gain.”

Carl Wuebker, Age 18
Atlanta, Georgia

“If a boss has really been kind to you and you know and he knows that you have done your best on the job, then it shouldn’t be too hard to explain to him your views on not wanting to be a cigarette girl. To me it would be hard to go up to a person and encourage him to buy a product I know will hurt him physically and spiritually. The boss will respect your feelings.”

Rhonda Leath, Age 19
Albuquerque, New Mexico