Solomon’s Lessons for Leading Sustainable Lives and Organizations

Abstract

Corporate sustainability (CS) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) are important contemporary issues in the field of business management and education. This article explores the relationships between biblical principles and sustainable management practices. It employs Solomon’s lessons and wisdom to build a foundation for sustainable management concepts. Solomon’s life and literature enable individuals to explore how the spiritual characteristics of the Creator offer lessons for Christian leaders who need to steward resources in a sustainable manner. God’s love, as revealed in Song of Songs, can motivate leaders to treat others justly and fairly. It also can empower them to sustainably manage social and relational resources. God’s wise righteousness, as revealed in Proverbs, may guide leaders to sustainably manage intellectual and human capital. Solomon also reveals God’s sovereign control in Ecclesiastes, emboldening the courage and self-control of leaders to sustainably manage natural, manufactured, and monetary resources. Truett Cathy at Chick-fil-A, Marion Wade at Service Master, and leaders at Hobby Lobby and Catholic Relief Services International serve as examples of Solomon’s lessons of sustainable management.