Faith in Business – the Story so Far
Faith in Business was launched when Richard Higginson joined the staff at Ridley Hall Theological College in Cambridge in 1989, combining the job of project Director with lecturing in Christian ethics to ordinands training for ministry in the Church of England. It began life as the God on Monday project, fuelled by the conviction that God is as interested as work on Monday as worship on Sunday. The core concerns have remained the same for over three decades: to encourage and equip Christians to be faithful disciples in their workplace and to work out a coherent Christian perspective on topical business issues. This has involved and inspired 2,000 leaders in business, church and academia who have attended events over the last 30 years.
During the 1990s we ran a varied programme featuring consultations on specialist subjects ranging from the ethics of marketing to doing business without bribes. Richard Higginson summed up the insights gained in his book Questions of Business Life (2002). Since the turn of the century the flagship event was a springtime weekend conference at Ridley Hall, focusing on such issues as Motivation in Business, Dilemmas in Business and The Life-Cycle of Business.
In 1996 Faith in Business entered into a partnership with another faith and work organisation ICF, to publish the journal Faith in Business Quarterly. It is the only publication of its kind in the UK. FiBQ contains articles, reviews and news items and gives Christians the opportunity to reflect on how their faith and values impact the business world.
Richard has written several books. Faith, Hope & the Global Economy (2012) drew on speaking engagements and research undertaken in many different countries. A Voice to be Heard (2017), co-authored with Kina Robertshaw, illustrated the dynamic contribution that Christian entrepreneurs (many of them attendees at Faith in Business events) are making both to UK society and the church’s mission. Kina’s series of video interviews Conversations with Christian Entrepreneurs highlights this further.
When Richard retired from Ridley Hall in 2018, Faith in Business became an independent charity. Peter Heslam (who had participated in the programme for many years) took over as Director, while Richard remains actively involved as Chair. The annual conference, restyled a retreat, moved to Westminster College in Cambridge and a new user-friendly website and newsletter (Cambridge Calling) were launched. A lively and experienced team of business leaders serve as volunteers on our Executive Team, taking Faith in Business forward into new exciting areas such as our webinar Faith in Business Monthly and our Faith in Business Prayer Network.