Table of contents
- 1. INTRODUCTION
- 2. BIBLIOGRAPHY
INTRODUCTION
| Contributors: Alistair Mackenzie and Wayne Kirkland Adopted by the Theology of Work Project Steering Committee July 29, 2010. Revised Dec. 1, 2010. ©2010 by the Theology of Work Project, Inc. Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, Copyright © 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and are used by permission. All rights reserved. |
Ethics is about knowing and doing what is good or right, and workplace ethics is about knowing and doing what is good or right at work. For the Christian, this means applying the Bible and other resources of the Christian faith to help decide and to do what is ethical or moral at work. (In this article, “ethics” and “morality” are used interchangeably.)
Three general approaches to ethics have achieved widespread use both in Christian moral thinking and in the world at large. The approaches are:
- Command — What do the rules say is the right way to act?
- Consequences — What actions are most likely to bring about the best outcome?
- Character — What kind of moral character do I want to be or become?[1]
What distinguishes Christian ethics is not that it uses different approaches, but that it brings biblical values into each of these approaches. There are biblical commands (also called principles), biblically desired outcomes and biblical character traits (also called virtues) that Christians need to bring into their moral decisions, actions and development.
In developing a Christian ethic, we will consider what help the Bible provides for each of these approaches. Then we’ll explore whether we might need to combine these three in some way to give us a more balanced and integrated approach. Finally, we’ll consider how to live with the reality that our world is fallen, or imperfect, and that there is almost never a perfect solution.
We will be developing a Christian approach to ethics as applied to work, but we will not attempt to give answers to major issues in workplace ethics. Instead, we will develop Christian ethical principles and methods that readers can use to apply the principles to issues and cases.
At this point, we offer you the choice between two different presentations of these approaches. Choose to read either a narrative involving a real-life case study or a more systematic presentation of the different approaches. The systematic approach is briefer and more abstract. The narrative approach is longer and applies the approaches to a real-life situation faced by used car dealer Wayne Kirkland.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Atkinson, David. Pastoral Ethics. Oxford: Lynx, 1994.
Atkinson, David, and David H. Field. New Dictionary of Christian Ethics and Pastoral Theology. Leicester, England, and Downers Grove, IL: IVP,1995.
Boulton, Wayne G. and Thomas D. Kennedy and Allen Verhey, eds. From Christ to the World: Introductory Readings in Christian Ethics. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1994.
Burkett, Larry. Business by the Book. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1990.
Chewning, Richard C., John W. Eby and Shirley J. Roels. Business Through the Eyes of Faith. London: Apollos, 1992.
Cook, David. Moral Choices: A Way of Exploring Christian Ethics. London: SPCK, 2000.
Farley, Benjamin W. In Praise of Virtue: An Exploration of Biblical Virtues in a Christian Context. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995.
Gardner, E. Clinton. Biblical Faith and Social Ethics. New York: Harper and Rowe, 1960.
Gill, Robin. Churchgoing and Christian Ethics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
Grenz, Stanley J. The Moral Quest. London: Apollos, 1997.
Hauerwas, Stanley. Vision and Virtue. Notre Dame: Fides/Claretian, 1974.
Hauerwas, Stanley. Character and the Christian Life: A Study in Theological Ethics. San Antonio: Trinity University Press, 1975.
Hauerwas, Stanley. A Community of Character: Toward a Constructive Christian Social Ethic. Indiana: University of Notre Dame, 1981.
Higginson, Richard. Called to Account. Guildford: Eagle, 1993.
Higginson, Richard. Questions of Business Life. UK: Spring Harvest, 2002.
Hill, Alexander. Just Business: Christian Ethics for the Marketplace, Downers Grove: IVP, 1997.
Hollinger, Dennis P. Choosing the Good: Christian Ethics in a Complex World. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2002.
Mackenzie, Alistair and Wayne Kirkland. Just Decisions. New Zealand: NavPress NZ, 2008.
Mackenzie, Alistair and Wayne Kirkland. Where’s God on Monday? Christchurch, NZ: NavPress NZ, 2002.
MacIntyre, Alasdair.After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theology. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1984.
McLemore, Clinton W. Street Smart Ethics. Louisville/London: WJKP, 2003.
Maxwell, John C. There’s No Such Thing as “Business” Ethics. USA: Warner Books, 2003.
Murdock, Mike.The Businessman’s Topical Bible. Tulsa: Honor Books, 1992.
Murdock, Mike.The Businesswoman’s Topical Bible. Tulsa: Honor Books, 1994.
Nash, Laura. Believers in Business, Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1994.
Rae, Scott B. and Kenman L. Wong. Beyond Integrity: A Judeo-Christian Approach to Business Ethics. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996.
Rae, Scott B. Moral Choices: An Introduction To Ethics. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1995.
Sherman, Doug and William Hendricks. Your Work Matters to God. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1987.
Sherman, Doug and William Hendricks. Keeping Your Ethical Edge Sharp. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1990.
Stackhouse, Max L. “The Ten Commandments: Economic Implications” in On Moral Business, Max L. Stackhouse, Dennis P. McCAnn and Shirley Roels, eds. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995.
Stassen, Glen H. and David P. Gushee. Kingdom Ethics. Downers Grove: IVP, 2003.
Zigarelli, Michael. Management by Proverbs. Chicago: Moody Press, 1999.
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