Abstract

There are universal Christian ethics that should be applied in economics. Christian ethics in economics stresses free will; the immense value, dignity, and unique talents of the individual; individual accountability for the use of resources, charity, and the exercise of justice; the relevance of the family and community; and a role for the state in the adjudication of economic justice, the enforcement of contracts, and the facilitation of competition and minimization of exploitation in product and resource markets. Civil authorities are to be obeyed until they set themselves in opposition to divine law, while the individual is prior to the state and the social order. Among economic systems. Christian ethics favors mvced democratic capitalism, rejecting non-democratic socialism and authoritarianism. Strictly utilitarian, consequentialist, or contractarian approaches to economic policy are unacceptable, since they reject the other-regardedness of God's law. While Christian ethics establishes certain clear economic objectives, final policy choices require a synthesis of reasoning research, and practical application.