Theology and Economics: A Christian Vision of the Common Good

Description

The relationship between contemporary theologians and economists has tended to range from frosty to indifferent. Economists usually relegate theological reasoning to the realm of private spirituality, viewing it as holding little relevance for the analysis of markets and economic activity. Theologians, on the other hand, often make lofty and idealized pronouncements about economics with very little understanding of the economic realities they are critiquing. This sometimes fraught, sometimes apathetic relationship is especially troubling given the broad consensus, among both religious and non-religious scholars, that—among the profusion of business and economic-related problems of the last decade—many could be classified as moral crises. Theology and Economics seeks to fill the gap in understanding, respect, and communication between economists and theologians and set a uniquely collaborative example. Jeremy Kidwell and Sean Doherty have brought together a group of prominent Christian economists and theologians to discuss how we might transform economic and theological reasoning from antagonistic forces into tools with which to cultivate more just and moral economies in the twenty-first century.