Economics in the Gospels Project - Study Release on Amazon

​ECONOMICS IN THE GOSPELS
Ancient Jewish stories about money and stuff 
By Steven Richards
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​We are pleased to make available Economics in the Gospels (EITG) today in both Kindle and paperback formats exclusively on Amazon.com.

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Bewildered by economics? Love the Gospels? How about mixing a little modern micro & macro (economics) in with Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John’s?

This study is close to ten years in the making and hopes to help bridge the gap between Jesus the man and his more metaphysical side. Exploring the world as Jesus might have – through His eyes - and lips. Not so much as the Son of God, but rather just a son. Then relating that point of view back to our current times – to our personal lives. It’s amazing how one can see themselves living quite well with just the things (and services, of course) we find there.

As one would expect there are some things missing - like wheeled vehicles for instance. Not a one is found - not a chariot, no wagons, no carts, nothing with a wheel at all. Not surprising when one considers that Jesus generally got around one of two ways that we can see: by boat or by foot (or the occasional colt/donkey).

The study scours the Gospels for economic activity and presents it over 20+ chapters (lots of whitespace) in a quick read that lays out familiar Gospel passages that just happen to be packed with economic references. For instance:

          Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot, people were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building…Luke 17:28

The Eco In the Gospels Project (EcoInTheGospels.org)

We’ve been using the study in the classroom at the National Theological College  in Nepal since 2016. Teaching economics is generally not a high priority for future clergy so learning through the Gospel passages in a quasi-classroom/-fellowship atmosphere makes it feel like they aren’t learning anything at all! Just reading the Gospels.

The same thing happened with the Ladies of St. Luke’s classes last summer, which were videotaped over two months, and which are the basis for the study’s video course.

​We look forward to bringing this new way of examining the world’s most well-known stories, from a fresh lens - a theology infused Econ 101 if you like.
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We can use a bit of Zoom fellowship as the course is made available over the coming months, one segment at a time beginning July 12th .

The EITG project includes the following:

​The Study
​A study of the economic activity in the first four books of the New Testament, this little book presents a view of the Gospel Economy and with it analogies to current day mixed economies and Capitalism. It is meant to paint a picture of Jesus and his followers as economic participants in the Roman society they found themselves. In so doing, it is a presentation of Jesus as a man rarely, if ever, examined. 

​Click here to find it on Amazon.com.
 
The Video Course
A 10-part online video course is coming July 12th. Stay tuned as we bring the EITG study to life in a Bible Study setting  with the Ladies of St. Luke’s!
 
The Page
A new online destination for materials, content, fellowship, links, and all things related to Economics in the Gospels. Check it out now at EcoInTheGospels.org.
 
The Blog
A new blog? Yes and no. The blog is brand new though many prior posts will be reposted here as they have long since expired in cyber land. Going forward there will be new posts to provide a bit of color and collateral materials driven by the video coursework. It began last week with our resurrected post on the Gospels and Ferguson. Click here to go!

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​About the Author
Steve Richards first studied economics at the University of Miami in the early 80’s and again at Babson College where he received his MBA in 1990. Most recently he studied economics and theology at Yale from 2013 to 2016. He considers himself a modern-day political economist of sorts. Richards founded the TheoEco Institute in the Spring of 2015 as a way to further his work in New Haven. Being an environmentalist at heart, he is deeply concerned with how the intersection of theology and economics impact the ecology.

Along these lines, Steve’s Economics in the Gospels journey started with a quixotic attempt to discern the role the Spirit plays in the world's economic activities, prompting him to pen a study into what Christ and the ancient Jews might have to offer us on the subject.

Richards put this study together over several years and finished it just as he founded the TheoEco Institute in 2015, a non-profit concerned with documenting, assisting, and researching those entangled in environmental and economic predicaments. Documentaries are a big part of TheoEco’s focus, as is its connection with Nepal, the 2015 earthquakes there, and the National Theological College, where Richards is a visiting professor. For more about the NTC click here. Steve, with his daughter Bobbie and colleague Amit Nepali, have produced and directed the following documentaries for TheoEco:

• Piles of Bricks (2016) – A collection of mini-documentaries produced about the 2015 earthquake aftermath including: Piles of Bricks – Patan Lalitpur; Sunday School on Saturday; Range of Damage; National Theological College; Villages
• Flourishing Kathmandu Church (2017) – About the growing Christian church in Kathmandu.
• So  Flo FLoods (2019)– A film about flooding in South Florida, past, present, and future.
• Piles of Bricks (Revisited) (2020)–  A look at the progress at the five year anniversary of the devastating quakes of 2015.

For more about TheoEco’s directors click here.
Contact Steve at [email protected].