Last week, Bountiful Financial and S&P Dow Jones announced a new index fund directed toward evangelical investors. The index, the S&P 500 Christian Values Screened Index, tracks the S&P 500 but excludes companies with connections to activities which are contrary to evangelical values. Some of the excluded industries include abortion, pornography, gambling, tobacco, and recreational cannabis.  How prevalent is “values investing”? What options are available for those who want to combine their spiritual values with their investments? 

In a statement announcing the new fund, Bountiful Financial described the new fund as the first in what is expected to be a group of investment products which are consistent with evangelical values. But Bountiful Financial is certainly not the only company offering investment funds that incorporate spiritual values. For example, the Timothy Plan was established in 1994; it offers what it refers to as “Biblically Responsible Investing.” The plan uses “filters” which consider such values as life, stewardship, purity, family, sobriety, and freedom, among others. The Plan’s website states: “Selecting a mutual fund should be about more than its rate of return – it should also be morally responsible.”

GuideStone Funds is another company which caters to Christian investors. Its website states that GuideStone has been assisting Christian investors for over a century. Like other companies, GuideStone offers funds that exclude certain “bad” investments. However, it also offers its “Impact Bond Fund,” which explicitly seeks to further Christian values through its investment. In other words, this fund does not just exclude certain companies based on negative impacts; it also strives to “work toward a world transformed by Christian investing.”

Of course, the idea of “evangelical investing” is not unique. Both individual and institutional investors have long sought to support “good” companies and avoid “bad” ones based on their assessment of those companies’ values. Such “values investing” is a natural outgrowth of efforts to boycott certain companies based on their actions. In recent years, for example, some people tried to punish Chick-fil-A for its opposition to same-sex marriage. Others boycotted Target for its perceived support of Pride Month and other “woke” activities. If people will boycott companies for their positions, why wouldn’t they also avoid investing in those companies? And just as many people specifically supported Chick-fil-A in the face of the boycott it faced, so also people choose to invest in companies in order to support their values.

Such investing is not limited to evangelical Christians. For example, Bountiful Financial also offers funds explicitly aimed at Roman Catholic and Latter-Day Saints investors. Other funds are shaped by Islamic Sharia law and Jewish beliefs. Obviously, those who take their spiritual beliefs seriously would understandably want to invest in ways that are consistent with their beliefs and support companies who share those beliefs.

With all of the options available, how do people decide which one best corresponds with both their values and their investment goals? Apart from the standard considerations like investment fees and prior performance, a few other considerations are in order. First, which “set” of values will guide the investments? 

For example, some Christians might want to avoid companies which manufacture and sell alcohol, while others might not see that as a priority. Second, is the goal simply to avoid companies which engage in “bad” businesses, as does the S&P 500 Christian Values Screened Index? Or is the goal to actively invest in companies which engage in “good” businesses, like the GuideStone Impact Bond Fund? And third, how does the investor balance the goals of impact and return on investment? Should the investment maximize return, while avoiding “bad” industries? Or is it more important to make a positive impact through the investment, with profit a secondary consideration?

It seems likely that the market for faith-based investment products will only increase as time goes on. People are becoming ever more aware of the impact of their choices and actions in every area of life, and financial decisions are no different. If believers truly want to “do all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31), their investments should certainly be included.