Woke Activism & Biblical Stewardship
Recently, I experienced an existential crisis caused by, of all things, baseball and Coca Cola. I watched leaders of these organizations openly oppose a new Georgia voting law; Major League Baseball even went so far as to incur huge expense to move the All-Star Game and 2021 draft out of Atlanta. I wondered when we’d get back to the good old days where we could buy a soda and watch a game without being confronted by politics.
If 2020 was the year of Covid-related shutdowns, then 2021 may well go on record as the year of political corporations.
Companies from Patagonia to Harry’s razors are increasingly using their influence to advocate for a progressive worldview and suggesting that anyone who disagrees with their positions is “racist,” “homophobic,” “transphobic,” etc. The rhetoric has become so divisive as to preclude actual debate.
What bothers me most about this ‘woke corporate activism’ trend isn’t just the companies’ actions, but the questions it raises for me as a professional who has devoted her life to investing in companies that seek to make a positive difference in the world.
We all agree there is a lot of brokenness in our world, but is it corporate America’s job to solve them all? What role should I play as a consumer? As an investors? Am I part of the problem in advocating for companies to act for positive social change?
Where’s the consistency and humanness?
One of the biggest issues that I have with the current culture of corporate social activism is this:
It’s inconsistent/arbitrary. My daughter’s favorite brand of hair care products wants us to know the “PANTENE Family is #BEAUTIFULGBTQ—Proud to Support Transgender Visibility.” But are they also excited to bring visibility to the issue of modern-day slavery in the supply chain?
The goals these companies are advocating change with the winds of popular sentiment, exposing the flawed world-view they are built upon. There’s no way to defend them because there’s no definition of right and wrong. Right is what most of us—or the loudest among us—say is right. Thus, there’s very little opportunity to have a genuine debate of issues. Which leads to my second major issue with the social activism dominating 2021:
It’s dehumanizing. In the Georgia issue, there has been seemingly little to no attempt at dialogue with lawmakers; only a series of Twitter denouncements and name-calling on the Sunday news shows.
In short, I disagree with both the ends and the means of these companies.
What does Scripture Have to Say About the Role of Business?
To understand the role of business, we need to go back to the beginning and understand the world God established. What is the story He is writing?
N.T. Wright, in his book “Surprised by Hope”, explains this story beautifully. We live in the “now but not yet” of the kingdom of God. He is actively working to make all things new again: the New Heavens and New Earth as described in Revelation. As Jesus says in Luke 17:21, “the Kingdom of God is among you” yet He also makes it clear that He is coming back to make things complete (Revelation 22:12). Before He ascended, Jesus charged His disciples (including you and me) with preaching, teaching, baptizing, and discipling as we go about our lives. We know the Great Commission but do we really know what it means for work and business?
Work was part of God’s original design—one of His gifts to us in the garden—before sin entered. And after the fall, our work is the means by which we partner with God in His work of renewing all things.
Business is simply a collection of people working together to produce goods or services for customers. Extending the theology of work, we see that business plays a critical role, not just in creating financial value, but in adding to human flourishing.
Scripture gives us a definition of the role of business, and it also paints a picture of the way the work is to be carried out: Business is meant to work with God (the means) to bring about his purposes in the world (the ends). Sounds simple, but what does it mean for me as an investor or business leader?
Practical Ideas for Moving Forward
It's great that Scripture gives us a blueprint for the role of business, but it probably wouldn’t work if I walked into the board room of a public company and suggested it should be their corporate vision.
It is much easier to live this mandate as a small, family-owned company. And yet, I don’t think that means my husband and I should abandon our public stock positions or step down from the board of the mutual funds. Maybe the following framework can provide practical guidance for how to engage:
Do no harm. Instead of trying to convince a group of secular-humanists of the correctness of my biblical world-view, we could start with issues on which most can agree (read about these specific issues in the full white paper).
Engage with respect. Rather than Twitter bullying, let’s seek to engage in productive dialogue where we treat each other with respect even when we disagree.
Encourage redemptive enterprises. In the context of startup investing or working with private equity and venture funds, we find more common ground for advancing Scripture’s view of what business should work to accomplish. Impact Foundation has over 200 examples of impact companies like this in our portfolio.