The presentation will be about the complex reciprocal relationship between theology and economics. Theology as one of the oldest academic disciplines has always had influence on economics. One of the most famous example is the introduction of the “invisible hand” by the moral philosopher Adam Smith. Influence from theology to economics or management sciences can happen implicitly or by intention. An example of the latter is when managers just copy concepts from a faith group because of their success, without necessarily sharing their faith. This happened for example with the term “evangelists” (Kawasaki 1991). Or it happens when believers want to implement the standards of their faith at work. The concept faith@work can be problematic if it is a single-faith approach within a secular work environment because it might lead to injustice.
Today the disciplines of economics and management sciences have become much bigger than theology. Since faith-based organizations have to be managed, economic and management sciences have influence on practical theology. Some management methods will foster the faith; others might affect the faith negatively.
Due to the reciprocal relationship between faith and management, we can also discover the re-entry of religious terms or concepts: these terms originate in Christian faith, enter the management sciences and from there re-enter the Christian faith. The examples “servant leadership” and “vision” show the subtle change of meaning that occurs when words wander between the two worlds, thus becoming “false friends” to the faith group.
Thus this presentation will contribute to the area of “economic theology”, defined as “the study of the forms of interactions between theological imaginaries on the one hand, economic thought and economic-managerial practices on the other, both past and present” (Schwarzkopf, 2020, p. 4).
Due to the many links between theology and economics, I will only deal with some selected examples, illustrating the different ways of influence.
Indicative Bibliography
Journal of Business Research and Management (2023), Special issue: Faith and Management
to be published in 2023.
Kawasaki, G. (1991). Selling the dream: How to promote your product, company, or ideas and
make a difference using everyday evangelism. HarperCollins.
Pattison, S. (1997). The faith of the managers: When management becomes religion. Cassell.
Schwarzkopf, S. (2020). The Routledge handbook of economic theology. Routledge.