Entrepreneurship: A Calling from God?

Three ways to apply the Golden Rule in our business life

Karam Bahnam

Is being an entrepreneur a calling from God? This question might seem strange to many readers, as we normally associate God’s callings uniquely with vocations to the religious life, such as priests and nuns. On the other hand, we tend to think of entrepreneurship exclusively in terms of a job or a means for providing financial needs to our families. This might be the common understanding of our culture today, yet Christianity begs to differ.

The Christian faith teaches that every human being has at least one calling in life. In his letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul encourages his readers to live their lives according to whatever calling God has for them. Some are called to be celibate priest and nuns and serve the people of God, while others are called to married life, to be fathers and mothers, and to have jobs and businesses. Regardless of what our calling is, God expects us to be faithful to it.

Being faithful to our calling as entrepreneurs means living our daily lives and conducting our business in light of our calling. We must be faithful to our calling not only conceptually, but also practically. The billion-dollar question (due to inflation “million” does not cut it anymore) is how?

Some might say entrepreneurs must take business ethics classes; others suggest taking business philosophy classes or even theology classes. This sounds too complicated. Besides, who has the time and the desire to do that?

It seems like we, entrepreneurs, need a golden rule - something easy and simple that if we follow, we can accomplish the goal of being faithful to our callings. To my knowledge, no one has that golden rule except Jesus Christ.

Jesus, in explaining the essence of the Christian faith teaches his followers the golden rule when he says, “Do unto others whatever you would have them do to you.” (Matthew 7:12) As Christian entrepreneurs, we must keep this rule in mind and apply it to all dimensions of our lives. There are at least three dimensions where the golden rule would help us achieve the goal of being faithful to our calling as Christian entrepreneurs.

The first would be the family dimension. Many of us strive so hard to provide financially for our families, even to the point where spouses are abandoned, and children are neglected. The desire to advance financially, motivated by the materialistic culture we live in, prepares the foundation for that. Here, Jesus’s rule of doing to others as we would like them to do to us is a reminder to prioritize our family lives.

Working too many hours a week comes at the cost of missing family time. I once heard a teen describing his father as the “Santa Claus” that he gets to see around Christmas only. Spending too many hours away from our spouses encourages them to create new habits and make new friends to fill their empty time.

Oftentimes, these cracks in family life result in complete breakdown of the family. Jesus says, “do to others as you would like them to do to you.” Think of what you would like your spouse to do to you and then do the same. Imagine yourself as a kid again and treat your children according to how you would have liked your parents to treat you. It is true that we have a calling to be entrepreneurs, but our calling as spouses and parents come first.

The second would be the legal dimension. All too often, entrepreneurs commit illegal activities with the justification that it is “not fair” that we have to follow certain rules and laws. The most common complaint is our responsibility to pay taxes. Here, Jesus’ words of doing to others as we would like them to do to us are critical.

As much as I hate paying taxes, as an entrepreneur, I need to be reminded that we were given the ability to conduct our businesses and thrive in this country due to the economical system established in this land, with all its pros and cons. We cannot accept what is convenient for us and ignore all that is not according to our likings.

Paying taxes has never been a fun chore; even Jesus complained when he paid his taxes on behalf of himself and Peter (Matthew 17:24-27), yet he reminded us of our responsibility to do just that when he said, “Render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” (Mark 12:17)

The third dimension is everyday practices. Regardless of the type of business that an entrepreneur engages in, having employees working under us and clients to provide services to is part of the package. Jesus’s golden rule of doing to others as we would like them to do to us must be the foundation on which we conduct our practices. Paying fair wages to our employees, not putting them in harm’s way, and giving them the ability to have time off are a few applications of the golden rule.

In addition, being ethical with our clients and customers in everyday business transactions is an unparalleled way to fulfill our calling as true Christian entrepreneurs. To some these practices show weakness or naivety, but to Christian entrepreneurs who believe that God would repay the faithful sevenfold, it could be the wisest investment we can ever make.

As Chaldeans we have enjoyed the many blessings this country has provided for us, among them the ability to be entrepreneurs. Let us live our lives and manage our business with the understanding that this is God’s calling for us. Let us strive to be faithful to this calling.

Karam Bahnam is long-time business owner and entrepreneur. He has a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy and master’s degree in Theology from Sacred Heart Major Seminary.