New booklet on Catholic faith-based investing launched

In a time of global turmoil, with issues such as ESG, sustainable development and climate change increasingly under attack in some quarters, the commitment of Catholic investors to ethical investment 'not only remains but is intensifying, driven by the purpose and commitment of their faith'.

That was the message in the introduction to a new booklet, Catholic Faith-based Investing, published by CCLA Investment Management (a pioneer of ethical investment and stewardship) and St Mary's University, London. It was launched last week with a fascinating panel discussion at CCLA's London offices, featuring five of the six authors who have contributed essays to the booklet.

They included:

• Philip Booth, Professor of Catholic Social Thought and Public Policy at St Mary's University, and Director of Policy and Research at the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales

• Paolo Camoletto, Chief Operating Officer and Financial Secretary for the Catholic Diocese of Westminster, London, who was also a contributor to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences' 2022 publication, Mensuram Bonam: Faith-based Measures for Catholic Investors – A Starting Point and a Call to Action

• Andrew Milligan, a member of CBFFT which, as trustees, oversees the Church of England's investments and a Trustee of the Catholic Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, who wrote in a personal capacity as an independent investment consultant.

• Russell Sparkes, visiting fellow at St Mary's University where he lectures on Catholic social teaching. He worked for many years at the Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church where he wrote books on ethical investment – leading to his being declared 'the leading author of influential research on responsible investment' in a global survey in 2009.

• Charles Wookey, co-founder of the charity, A Blueprint for a Better Business, which helps businesses to be inspired and guided by a purpose that serves society as well as earns a fair and sustainable return for investors.

Sadly, the sixth author, Richard Turnbull, passed away in 2025. He was the Director Emeritus of the Centre for Enterprise, Markets & Ethics (CEME) and an ordained Church of England minister.

The essays all focus on aspects of ethical investment and practice. They range from an introduction to Mensuram Bonam and how to use it; examining fossil fuel divestment and asking if faith-based investors should 'jump on the bandwagon'; an overview of ethical investment and churches; reflections on Catholic social teaching and investment; and how purpose-led businesses navigate this changing world.

The authors gave short introductions to their essays and then invited comments and questions. The audience of 45-50 people was clearly highly engaged and there were some lively debates.

A couple of the speakers highlighted how difficult it can be to 'integrate our ethics into doing our job'. As one observed: 'It's not straight-forward – it's really not a job, it's a vocation.'

Another commented that faith-based investors 'have an obligation to try not to be engaged with practices they believe to be unethical,' but asked: 'Where should the threshold be set?' For example, if you decide not to invest in Company X, should you also ban investments in the company that owns the office space it rents, or the catering company that provides sandwiches for its employees?

There were no easy answers but instead an inspiring sense of the profound and thoughtful commitment to ethical investing that drives so many faith-based investors. As one speaker said, they play 'a prophetic role and a very important one – but I don't underestimate the challenges of shifting the system.'

Click below to download Catholic Faith-based Investing.

Catholic faith-based investing.pdf

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