faith and work

February 28, 2022

The good news of your God-given limits

I love productivity books. I’ve read all the big classics on the subject, from Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People to Cal Newport’s Deep Work. I am a devotee of David Allen’s productivity ur-text, Getting Things Done. Continue Reading...

January 11, 2022

Dave Ramsey, Christian witness, and the morality of markets

The tweet heard ’round the world last week involved a clip of Dave Ramsey arguing that a Christian landlord can, ethically, raise rents to market levels even if it means that the renter has to move out. Continue Reading...

December 22, 2021

This Advent, the Christmas child calls you and me

We arrive at the Christmas stable. We have prepared. The Christ child is come to us—Immanuel. We begin by taking a step back. The candle that is lit for the final Sunday of Advent reminds us of Mary, the one who brings the Lord into the world. Continue Reading...

December 15, 2021

Advent lifts the veil of judgment and mercy in the divine economy

One of the more disturbing aspects of the way the market economy works is the ability of, at least some, participants to avoid responsibility for their decisions and actions. The manner in which this works is through the concepts of corporate personality and limited liability. Continue Reading...

December 09, 2021

When bookshops were miraculous, romantic places

I began a series of essays on Christmas movies last week with The Bishop’s Wife (1947), a story about church, the community of the faithful, and spiritual responsibility. This week, I’m writing about a less lofty subject, the community of the workplace and the life of commerce, but a much better movie, The Shop Around the Corner (1940), one of the classics of old Hollywood, directed by Ernst Lubitsch and starring Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan as shopkeepers who fall in love over Christmas. Continue Reading...

July 26, 2021

A biblical theology of work, Part 4: Enterprise and entrepreneurship

Why does business matter to God? Well, if business does not matter to God then we render a large part of human existence meaningless. The church, however, seems to be incapable in so many ways of understanding business resulting in words such as “profit” or “incentive” being seen as dirty. Continue Reading...

July 21, 2021

How a bamboo entrepreneur cooperates with nature and neighbor

Rekha Dey wasn’t always passionate about bamboo, but after touring an innovative production facility, she saw its potential. With the right business model, bamboo could be used to provide high-quality, environmentally friendly housing across India. Continue Reading...

May 20, 2021

Finding meaning in work: Christian vocation means working with ‘holy intent’

America’s new secular religions of “workism” and “careerism” are leading to all sorts of cultural decay, from cults of self-esteem to the decline of the family and beyond. Our work has plenty of meaning, but without the right moral foundation and transcendent focus, our quests for economic purpose can quickly devolve into a base idolatry of the self. Continue Reading...

September 24, 2020

‘A different kind of lawyer’: Amy Coney Barrett on Christian vocation

Given the recent passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, public conversation has swirled with speculation about President Donald Trump’s list of potential replacements. Leading the pack is Judge Amy Coney Barrett, a circuit judge and former Notre Dame law professor, who has attracted significant heat from progressives due to her devout Catholicism, pro-life beliefs, and fondness for originalism. Continue Reading...

March 13, 2020

The Midwest’s growing ‘faith-and-tech movement’

We have long heard about the incessant flow of America’s best-and-brightest workers to the country’s largest urban centers, leading many to fear the consolidated power of “coastal elites” and the continuous disruption of the American heartland. Continue Reading...

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