A Theological Economy : The Legacies of Adam Smith and St. Paul

An analysis of Adam Smith and St. Paul that explores practical reasoning and ethical action in the market, church and beyond.

This highly developed work bears the fruit of twenty-five years of research and teaching on theology, ethics, and economics by the accomplished D. Stephen Long. First, he develops arguments from his long career exploring this intersection, responding to the criticisms of both theologians and economists. This allows Long to launch into a fully realised analysis of Adam Smith and St. Paul as founding figures in economics and theology. They established traditions of theological economics that set forth new perspectives and generated ongoing traditions of interpretations of ethical agency. The focused concern on Smith and Paul then broadens into a fuller discussion of practical reasoning, addressing what it means for humans to act ethically in the market, in the church, and in other spheres of life. Finally, Long examines what macroeconomic structures best fit within this field of theological economics.