Business and Wealth, Sins and Virtues

In this extended piece, guest author Mats Tunehag offers deep and thoughtful insights, making it a longer read than usual—but well worth your time.

In 1925, Mahatma Gandhi published a list of Seven Social Sins. They are a stark moral warning about behaviors that corrode society from within: Wealth without Work, Pleasure without Conscience, Knowledge without Character, Commerce without Morality, Science without Humanity, Religion without Sacrifice, and Politics without Principle.

A key word is “without”. But what if we exchanged it for “with”?

Wealth with Work, Pleasure with Conscience, Knowledge with Character, Commerce with Morality, Science with Humanity, Religion with Sacrifice, and Politics with Principle.

Please allow me to review Gandhi’s seven social sins through the lenses of the Business as Mission (BAM) Manifesto (2004) and the Wealth Creation Manifesto (2017), as a positive, constructive counterpart moving from “without” to “with”, from sins to virtues. The two manifestos offer a framework for Christ-centered ethical business and transformative wealth creation.

By reading Gandhi’s critique alongside the affirmations of the Manifestos[i], we see a fuller vision of business. The manifestos can become a moral compass for individuals and institutions. It is not merely avoiding social sins, but rather proactively working with God and for the common good, turning the sin catalogue into a virtuous one. It starts with us, but it is beyond a personal issue, since our sins and virtues affect others.

1. Wealth Without / With Work

Gandhi warned against acquiring riches without honest labor. The Wealth Creation Manifesto affirms that wealth creation is “a holy calling” rooted in God’s design, where we co-create with Him to produce goods and services for the common good. It also calls for a global perspective and engagement. The manifestos reject exploitation and the hoarding of wealth. They call for business grounded in our Judeo-Christian tradition where different kinds of wealth are both created and shared among all nations. Including spiritual wealth.

“Wealth creation is a holy calling, and a God-given gift, which is commended in the Bible.” 

2. Pleasure Without / With Conscience

Enjoying life and its blessings is not inherently wrong. But unrestrained pursuit of pleasure without biblically rooted values can corrupt both personal character and the marketplace. The manifestos tell us to pursue a holistic transformation of people and societies. They speak about the quadruple bottom line — spiritual, economic, social, and environmental transformation through business. This presupposes and demands conscience-led decisions within a biblical mindset. Business people are urged to see beyond profit or personal indulgence, towards service and the holistic well-being of others.

“We believe that the Gospel has the power to transform individuals, communities, and societies. Christians in business should therefore be a part of this holistic transformation through business.”

3. Knowledge Without / With Character

Knowledge without morals can make men better devils. Or as C.S. Lewis said: "Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make man a more clever devil." This also applies to business acumen and investment strategies. Business education and investment expertise, without integrity, can cause great harm. 

The Wealth Creation Manifesto calls for wealth creators to act with justice, concern for the poor, and environmental stewardship. BAM emphasizes a positive, holistic transformation of both individuals and societies, which implies that skills and knowledge should always be guided by values deeply rooted in Christ and the teachings of the Church.

“Wealth creation must always be pursued with justice and a concern for the poor.”

4. Commerce Without / With Morality

Commerce in an ethical vacuum corrupts trade and business. It may be pursuing profit for shareholders at the expense of other stakeholders, violating human dignity through labor exploitation, or neglecting creation care.

Business needs a profit to exist and survive. It is like blood to the body. But we don’t live for the blood, but the blood makes it possible for us to live and be a blessing to others. Similarly, healthy and profitable businesses can thrive and have a redemptive influence on many stakeholders.

Commerce with morality is the opposite of exploitation and corruption; it treats customers, suppliers, and employees as neighbors, not merely as means to an end. The manifestos talk about business with a Kingdom of God perspective, purpose, and impact, and that commercial activity must be fair, just, and life-giving. But it is not Kingdom values without King Jesus, or just applying Christian morality without Christ.

“Business as Mission is about business with a Kingdom of God perspective, purpose, and impact.”

5. Science Without / With Humanity

For Gandhi, science stripped of compassion can dehumanize. Technological progress must be measured not just in innovation but in service to humanity.

Godly business includes creation care, and innovations should aim at serving people and meet various needs, be they economical, spiritual, social, physical, environmental, et cetera. The Wealth Creation Manifesto integrates environmental stewardship into its affirmations, insisting that creation care “is not optional.” Innovation should not harm the planet or people. Business can and should be a vehicle for solving environmental and social challenges.

Thus, true value-aligned businesses may invest in green technologies or develop products that improve health or access to clean water. Science guided by love. The Wealth Creation Manifesto’s emphasis on stewardship and cultural sensitivity shows that progress must be anchored in care for people and planet - to the greater glory of God.

“We are created in God’s image, to co-create with Him and for Him, to create products and services for the common good.”

6. Religion Without / With Sacrifice

Gandhi rejected empty religiosity, but he admired Jesus. He came to give, and he sacrificed himself to serve others and bring about restoration of all things.

As Christian entrepreneurs, we do business as worship in the marketplace — demonstrating faith not just in words, but sometimes in business decisions that may cost something.[ii]

The Business as Mission Manifesto explicitly urges the Church to “identify, affirm, pray for, commission and release” business people to live out their faith in the marketplace. The Wealth Creation Manifesto similarly frames business as service to God and people. This requires sacrifice: resisting unethical opportunities, choosing fair practices over easy profits, and sometimes accepting slower growth for the sake of the common good.

“We believe in following in the footsteps of Jesus, who constantly and consistently met the needs of the people he encountered, thus demonstrating the love of God and the rule of His kingdom.”

7. Politics Without / With Principle

While Gandhi addressed political power, his warning extends to all forms of leadership. Influence without moral grounding is dangerous.

The BAM Manifesto and the Wealth Creation Manifesto are not political, but both deal with leadership in the marketplace. They call for justice, stewardship, and holistic transformation, and shaping leaders who follow Jesus and pursue the common good.

As business leaders and investors, we may advocate for fair trade policies, fight corruption and labor exploitation, and champion ethical industry standards.

“We call upon business people globally to consider how their gifts and experience might be used to help meet the world’s most pressing spiritual and physical needs through Business as Mission.”

Conclusion

When Gandhi’s Seven Social Sins are placed alongside the BAM and Wealth Creation affirmations, a striking synergy emerges. Gandhi warns us what to avoid; the BAM and Wealth Creation Manifesto show us what to pursue.

From Avoidance to Action: It is not enough to simply shun “commerce without morality.” We are encouraged to proactively run businesses and invest with a Kingdom of God purpose, perspective, and impact.

From Critique to Creation: Gandhi’s list diagnoses the disease; the manifestos offer a prescription for holistic transformation through entrepreneurship, seeking solutions to global issues, powered by Christ.

From Personal Ethics to Global Impact: The manifestos frame business as a part of a global thrust, to communities and nations, with a special focus on the underserved of the world.
Gandhi’s century-old warnings still ring true. But when paired with the Business as Mission Manifesto and the Wealth Creation Manifesto, they form a roadmap for a new generation of leaders in the marketplace.

This is not about avoiding social sins alone; it is about embracing business as a redemptive calling — to bring spiritual, social, economic, and environmental transformation, all for the greater glory of God.

Mats Tunehag

References:

[i] BAM Manifesto https://bamglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/BAM-Manifesto-2023.pdf

Wealth Creation Manifesto and related resources in 20 languages https://bamglobal.org/wealth-creation/

Excerpts from the two manifestos:

BAM Manifesto Affirmations

We believe that God has created all men & women in His image with the ability to be creative, creating good things for themselves and for others - this includes business.

We believe in following in the footsteps of Jesus, who constantly and consistently met the needs of the people he encountered, thus demonstrating the love of God and the rule of His kingdom.

We believe that the Holy Spirit empowers all members of the Body of Christ to serve, to meet the real spiritual and physical needs of others, demonstrating the kingdom of God.

We believe that God has called and equipped business people to make a Kingdom difference in and through their businesses.

We believe that the Gospel has the power to transform individuals, communities, and societies. Christians in business should therefore be a part of this holistic transformation through business.

We recognize the fact that poverty and unemployment are often rampant in areas where the name of Jesus is rarely heard and understood.

We recognize both the dire need for and the importance of business development. However, it is more than just business per se. Business as Mission is about business with a Kingdom of God perspective, purpose, and impact.

We recognize that there is a need for job creation and for multiplication of businesses all over the world, aiming at the quadruple bottom line: spiritual, economical, social, and environmental transformation.

We recognize the fact that the church has a huge and largely untapped resource in the Christian business community to meet the needs of the world—in and through business—and bring glory to God in the marketplace and beyond.

Recommendation

We call upon the Church worldwide to identify, affirm, pray for, commission, and release business people and entrepreneurs to exercise their gifts and calling as business people in the world, among all peoples, and to the ends of the earth.

We call upon business people globally to receive this affirmation and to consider how their gifts and experience might be used to help meet the world’s most pressing spiritual and physical needs through Business as Mission.

Wealth Creation Manifesto Affirmations

1. Wealth creation is rooted in God the Creator, who created a world that flourishes with abundance and diversity.

2. We are created in God’s image, to co-create with Him and for Him, to create products and services for the common good.

3. Wealth creation is a holy calling and a God-given gift, which is commended in the Bible.

4. Wealth creators should be affirmed by the Church, and equipped and deployed to serve in the marketplace among all peoples and nations.

5. Wealth hoarding is wrong, and wealth sharing should be encouraged, but there is no wealth to be shared unless it has been created.

6. There is a universal call to generosity, and contentment is a virtue, but material simplicity is a personal choice, and involuntary poverty should be alleviated.

7. The purpose of wealth creation through business goes beyond giving generously, although that is to be commended; good business has intrinsic value as a means of material provision and can be an agent of positive transformation in society.

8. Business has a special capacity to create financial wealth, but also has the potential to create different kinds of wealth for many stakeholders, including social, intellectual, physical, and spiritual wealth.

9. Wealth creation through business has proven power to lift people and nations out of poverty.

10. Wealth creation must always be pursued with justice and a concern for the poor, and should be sensitive to each unique cultural context.

11. Creation care is not optional. Stewardship of creation and business solutions to environmental challenges should be an integral part of wealth creation through business.

Appeal

We present these affirmations to the Church worldwide, and especially to leaders in business, church, government, and academia.

We call the church to embrace wealth creation as central to our mission of holistic transformation of peoples and societies.

We call for fresh, ongoing efforts to equip and launch wealth creators to that very end.

We call wealth creators to perseverance, diligently using their God-given gifts to serve God and people.

[ii] As Praxis (https://www.praxis.co/) says about redemptive business through sacrifice:

“The world can't restore itself, so there is no restoration without sacrifice. When we freely choose to take a risk, bear a cost, or withhold a claim—of resources, reputation, time horizon, rights, power, independence, or opportunity—for sake of another, we are stepping into a form of sacrifice.”