“Every day, people comment on how grateful they are and how blessed they are to have peace of mind that their money is invested in areas that are not grieving the heart of God,” says Dan Celia. “For the first time in many of their lives, they are not worried about money. They know that God will honor their commitment.” 1
Mr. Celia has little patience with advisors that try to steer clients away from BRI-focused portfolios.
“If a financial advisor tries to talk you out of it, fire him (or her),” he said. “Advisors shouldn’t question someone’s convictions. They should be helping their clients fulfill their goals and their objective of being responsible with God’s money. If they don’t find an advisor who can help them do this, they should keep looking.” 2
Shane Enete, assistant professor of finance at Biola University, summarizes: “When a BRI product helps a Christian take seriously their role as steward of God’s money through a combination of divesting, engaging and endorsing, that BRI product is serving the investor in a very meaningful way.” 3
The immediate positive impact is on the Christian investor, who no longer worries that his or her dollars are funding immoral activities, and still receives a solid return on investment. Society also benefits, as companies take notice that many of their shareholders don’t want their investments aiding anti-family, anti-marriage, and anti-morality causes.
Finally, it’s even good for financial advisors.
“As people become convicted of being biblically responsible investors, they are the best clients to have,” Mr. Celia says. “They are at peace; they’re not going to call every time the market goes down or become ecstatic when the market goes up. After 30 years of dealing with clients, I can say that these are the best clients that an advisor can have.” 4
Approaching Employers
What about Christian employees at secular companies with company-sponsored retirement plans? What should they do if their investment options amount only to a few mutual funds that include “sin stocks?”
“There’s nothing wrong with bringing your employer’s attention to the possibility of adding some investment choices that incorporate BRI,” said Mark Minnella. “First, Christian employees should be thankful and approach the employer with respect and thanksgiving for what they are doing. They could then point out that their current 401 k includes an environmentally friendly fund — because most do — and they could say: ‘That’s great. We wonder if you would consider also doing that for those of us interested in BRI?’” 5
Mr. Minnella also recommends downloading a letter provided by the screening site eVALUEator, a tool to analyze mutual funds based on moral integrity, and sending it to the employer. “You could even send it anonymously if you’re worried about being singled out,” he said.
Before investing, consider Each funds’ investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. a prospectus containing this information is available through your Financial Advisor or funds’ website. Please read it carefully.
1 Telephone interview January 26, 2018.
2 Ibid.
3 Enete, “Inspired Investing: An introduction to Biblically Responsible Investing,” Crowell School of Business, Biola University, at: http://www.inspireinvesting.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Inspired-Investing_Intro-To-Biblically-Responsible-Investing.pdf.
4 Telephone interview, January 26, 2018.
5 Telephone interview with Mark Minnella, Jan. 26, 2018.
YOUR CHOICES COUNT: THE CASE FOR BIBLICALLY RESPONSIBLE INVESTING
Article 1 – A Brief History of Socially Responsible Investing
Article 2 – God’s Financial Advice
Article 3 – Biblically Responsible Finance from 1976 to the Present
Article 4 – Moral Investing – A Growing Field
Article 5 – BRI Historical Returns: Comparable–or Better
Article 6 – Impacting the Kingdom.
A writer for Timothy Partners, Ltd. He is a regular weekly columnist for The Washington Times and Townhall.com and is frequently published by AmericanThinker.com, DailyCaller.com, OneNewsNow.com, and others. He has authored the following books: “A Strong Constitution: What Would America Look Like If We Followed the Law” (D. James Kennedy Ministries, 2018), Invested with Purpose: The Birth of the Biblically-Responsible Investment Movement, and A Nation Worth Fighting For: 10 Steps to Restore Freedom.
