I didn't say it was unique or an outlier to the rural South, I said it was a trademark small town Southern behavior. To the rest of the US, it's not as common; discussing religious matters, assuming everyone around you is religious (and your flavor of religion). Small Southern communities tend to be insular and homogeneous, in terms of values and ideas.

You're speaking from the perspective of working in a hospital, where death can be a constant...it may even have Saint prefacing the name. That isn't the experience of most people. Most businesses discourage that kind of behavior in the workplace, as it can lead to exclusion, isolation and, in some cases, lawsuits due to possible favoritism.