Faith-Based Investing: Aligning Your Portfolio with Christian Values

From Catholic Social Teaching to modern shareholder advocacy, values-driven investing continues to shape markets and missions.

In today’s crowded investment marketplace, discerning investors are seeking more than just returns.

They want alignment. They want purpose. And increasingly, they want portfolios that reflect their Christian values.

Faith-based investing, often referred to as FBI, is one approach that allows investors to put their capital to work in ways that reflect biblical principles. It offers a method of investing in companies that “do well by doing good,” while avoiding those whose practices violate faith-based convictions.

What Is Faith-Based Investing?

Faith-based investing is a subset of Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR, a broader category of investing that encourages companies to promote the common good while minimizing risk. CSR, also known as corporate citizenship, is a self-regulating model grounded in the principle of “doing well by doing good.”

Research suggests that CSR can build moral capital and public trust, benefits that may help preserve long-term market value. Faith-based investing brings that same ethical lens to financial decision-making, grounded specifically in Christian doctrine and values.

While interest in faith-aligned investing has grown in recent years, the practice itself is not new. More than a century ago, Methodist institutions began screening out investments in alcohol, tobacco, and gambling. Quaker communities applied similar filters based on values like peace, integrity, and justice.

Catholic Social Teaching and the Moral Roots of Investing

Faith-based investing draws much of its inspiration from Catholic Social Teaching, or CST, formalized in Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum, which emphasized human dignity, workers’ rights, and the moral obligations of both labor and capital.

Pope Leo XIII also published Libertas in 1888, which addressed liberalism, democracy, and freedom of conscience. These writings laid the foundation for what is now recognized as the Church’s formal stance on economic justice, influencing CSR, ESG, and socially responsible investing around the globe.

Catholic doctrine has long stressed that human dignity and the common good are central to both faith and finance. Over the past century, CST has addressed issues including workers’ rights, the responsibilities of nation-states, income inequality, and environmental stewardship.

Faith in Action: Shareholder Advocacy and Social Change

Religious investors have historically played a role in driving ethical corporate behavior. In the 1960s and ’70s, faith-based institutions, particularly Catholic sisters and Protestant groups, used their retirement fund holdings to protest apartheid in South Africa.

One prominent example, Rev. Leon Sullivan, a Baptist minister and civil rights activist, authored the “Sullivan Principles” in 1977. These principles promoted workplace equality, fair pay, and corporate investment in underserved communities. Shareholders used them as a litmus test for ethical business conduct and as leverage for political change.

Today, many interdenominational investors view asset management not simply as financial stewardship, but as mission-driven engagement, and a powerful tool for social transformation.

The Expanding Landscape of Values-Based Investing

Faith-based investing is one branch of a broader tree that includes various values-aligned approaches. While they share common ethical aims, these strategies differ in source and emphasis. Some are rooted in religious traditions, others are secular in nature.

Examples include:

• Faith-Based Investing, FBI
• Biblically Responsible Investing
• Values-Driven Investing
• Ethical Investing
• Socially Responsible Investing, SRI
• Environmental, Social, and Governance, ESG, Investing
• Impact Investing
• Sustainable Investing

While there is often overlap between these categories, the first few are primarily guided by religious values, while the latter are grounded in secular ethical frameworks.

Biblical Principles for Financial Stewardship

Austin Pryor of Crown Financial Investing outlines seven principles that guide Christian investors:

1. Acknowledge God’s ownership of all things.
2. Trust in God’s sovereignty over financial outcomes.
3. Use investing as a way to advance God’s Kingdom.
4. Prioritize God’s values over worldly gain.
5. Seek wisdom in alignment with Scripture.
6. Honor God’s majesty above material ambition.
7. Place trust in God’s provision and blessings.

These principles underscore the spiritual foundation of Christian investing, emphasizing stewardship, responsibility, and trust.

How to Invest According to Christian Values

One widely used approach in faith-based investing is screening, actively avoiding investments in companies that profit from practices contrary to Christian values.

Typical screens exclude corporations involved in:

• Abortion services or support
• Pornography
• Anti-family entertainment
• Gambling
• Tobacco and alcohol
• Human rights violations

While this may appear restrictive, many investors see it as an act of faith, trusting that their commitment to God’s values will not conflict with long-term financial security.

The ultimate goal, to invest not just for profit, but for purpose.

Because just like your life, your investing should bring glory to God.

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