Books & Publications

Below is a selection of recommended reading and viewing, focusing on items that are still in print and readily available. 

St Paul's Institute does not receive any compensation for the recommendation of these texts, and we do so with the sincere belief that they are useful resources for continued study.  This is not to say that we explicitly condone all of the viewpoints or opinions represented here, but that we believe that they have something to offer to the wider discussion taking place.

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God at Work: Living Every Day with Purpose
by Ken Costa

As an investment banker in the City of London, Ken Costa has read "The Financial Times" and "The Bible" almost every day for thirty years. But there is a widespread view that God and business just do not mix. The competitive, cut throat demands of the marketplace are seen as the obvious enemy of Christian compassion and love. To Ken Costa, the God who created and sustains the world is also the God of the workplace. If the Christian faith is not relevant to the work place it is not relevant at all.


Theology of Money
by Philip Goodchild

By contrast to the received wisdom of economics that money is a passive object of human invention and control - an instrument of exchange and a measure of value - this work explroes the significance of money as a social contract and therefore as a dynamic social force within the global economy.  Goodchild argues that money has taken the place of God.  It is the dominant global religion in practice, even if no one believes it in principle.


Good Value: Reflections on Money, Morality and an Uncertain World
by Stephen Green

How do we, living in a globalized world caught in an age of financial and ecological turbulence, respond to the differing needs of individuals and institutions?

Stephen Green, Chairman of HSBC, reflects on how the human desires for exploration and exchange have led us into a globalized, urban world.  He considers why capitalism - flawed though it obviously is - seems to be the best system by which to improve material human wealth.


Prosperity Without Growth: Economics of a Finite Planet
by Tim Jackson

A compelling case against continued economic growth in developed nations. No one denies that development is essential for poorer nations. But in the advanced economies there is mounting evidence that ever-increasing consumption adds little to human happiness and may even impede it. More urgently, it is now clear that the ecosystems that sustain our economies are collapsing under the impacts of rising consumption. Unless we can radically lower the environmental impact of economic activity - and there is no evidence to suggest that we can - we will have to devise a path to prosperity that does not rely on continued growth.


Money (Art of Living)
by Eric Lonergan

We have seen banks tumble, City firms collapse and the advent of the worst financial crisis since the 1930s. At the heart of these events lies the pursuit of money. But just what is this thing that seems so powerful and omnipresent and yet is physically worthless - a piece of paper, or a digit on a computer screen? How does it work? And, more importantly, how far can we control the power that it has over our lives?


The Spirit Level: Why Equality is Better for Everyone
by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett

Why do we mistrust people more in the UK than in Japan? Why do Americans have higher rates of teenage pregnancy than the French? What makes the Swedish thinner than the Greeks? The answer: inequality. This groundbreaking book, based on years of research, provides hard evidence to show how almost everything - from life expectancy to depression levels, violence to illiteracy - is affected not by how wealthy a society is, but how equal it is.


The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time
by Jeffrey Sachs

Jeffrey Sachs draws on his remarkable 25 years' experience to offer a thrilling and inspiring vision of the keys to economic success in the world today. Marrying vivid storytelling with acute analysis, he sets the stage by drawing a conceptual map of the world economy and explains why, over the past 200 years, wealth and poverty have diverged and evolved across the planet, and why the poorest nations have been so markedly unable to escape the trap of poverty.


Grace and Mortgage: Language of Faith and the Debt of the World
by Peter Selby

No book exposed the delusions and fantasies that underpin the world's economic system better than Peter Selby's Grace and Mortgage. It opened many people's eyes to the corrosive effect of debt, which impoverishes the poorest and leads inevitably to the despoiling of the earth. It gave us a new language for understanding the Gospel.



All You Need to Know About the City
by Christopher Stoakes

The global financial crisis has made what goes in the City of London's financial markets more important and relevant than ever.  What is the credit crunch and sub-prime lending? What are toxic tranches and SIVs and why do they matter?  This book gives you the answers. Designed to be a quick and easy read, it explains what everything is and how it all connects.