Every financial decision represents an allocation of capital that supports certain economic activities, business models, and visions of society.

For this reason, at Altum Faithful Investing we have developed the Altum 500 US Catholic Ethos Index Equal Weight, an index designed to provide investors with a clear benchmark that combines financial rigor with moral coherence.

The index was created with a specific goal in mind: to offer a genuine alternative for those who wish to practice faith-based investing, enabling investors to participate in financial markets without compromising their principles.

In an increasingly complex financial world—where passive investing accounts for a large share of global capital flows—having benchmarks that reflect solid ethical values has become more important than ever.

Why Catholic investors need new benchmarks

For decades, financial indices have served as reference points for building investment portfolios, measuring market performance, and designing financial products.

However, these traditional indices have been built solely on financial criteria, without considering the ethical or moral implications of the companies they include.

Many widely used benchmarks contain companies that are directly or indirectly involved in activities that conflict with the Social Teaching of the Church, such as abortion, human embryo research, or corporate practices that undermine the family and human dignity.

The Altum 500 US Catholic Ethos Index was created precisely to address this need—offering a new guide for investors seeking a benchmark that does not conflict with their faith.

What is the Altum 500 US Catholic Ethos Index?

The Altum 500 US Catholic Ethos Index Equal Weight is an equity index designed to provide a clear benchmark for responsible investing from a Catholic perspective.

The process begins by analyzing the 2,500 largest publicly traded companies in the United States by market capitalization.

Altum then applies its Altum Investment Guidelines, rooted in the Social Teaching of the Church, to exclude companies whose activities or corporate practices conflict with Catholic principles.

From the remaining universe, 500 companies that meet these ethical criteria are selected.

Altum Investment Guidelines

The Altum Investment Guidelines are based on four core pillars:

• Promotion of human life
• Promotion of human dignity
• Protection of the family
• Care for and protection of creation

This framework goes beyond analyzing a company’s core business activity. It also evaluates corporate practices, ensuring a deeper and more comprehensive ethical assessment.

Why the index uses an Equal Weight structure

Traditional indices typically weight companies according to market capitalization, giving greater influence to the largest corporations.

The Altum 500 instead uses an equal weight structure, where every company in the index receives the same allocation.

This approach reduces concentration in mega-corporations, improves diversification, and distributes capital more evenly across the economy.

Investing is a moral act

Investment decisions influence the real economy and shape the type of society that develops.

For this reason, the allocation of capital cannot be considered morally neutral.

Catholic investing seeks to align financial returns with the common good.

The Altum 500 US Catholic Ethos Index represents an important step toward providing an independent, transparent, and faith-aligned benchmark for investors who want to integrate Catholic values into their financial decisions.

Catholic Social Teaching does not offer technical formulas, but it does provide solid and enduring principles to guide human action in the economic sphere. Faith is not an optional add-on to investing; it is its moral compass.

For this reason, investing in coherence with one’s faith requires two inseparable dimensions:
• Structuring the portfolio according to objective principles.
• Living investing as a vocation that requires virtues.

Below, we develop ten key concepts: the first five are structural foundations for building portfolios consistent with the faith; the next five are virtues that every Christian investor should cultivate.

The Structural Foundations of a Faith-Consistent Portfolio

• The Dignity of the Human Person

The dignity of the human person is the indispensable and non-negotiable principle of all Catholic investing. The human person is always an end in himself or herself, and never a means at the service of economic profit.

This principle requires companies to place the human person at the center and, through their activities and corporate practices, to safeguard the dignity of both their employees and their customers.

Faith-consistent investing therefore places human dignity at the center of business analysis, in a stable and objective manner.

• The Protection of Life

Human life, from conception to natural death, is inviolable. Therefore, faith-consistent investing excludes companies involved in abortion, embryonic research, euthanasia, or industries that directly attack human life.

Catholic investors cannot detach themselves from the ultimate use of their capital. Responsible Catholic investing requires genuine coherence, not ambiguous compromises.

• The Protection of the Family

The family, founded on marriage between one man and one woman, is the basic cell of society.
A faith-consistent investment portfolio should avoid companies that promote models contrary to Christian anthropology or that systematically erode the institution of the family.

• Care for Creation

Care for creation is not environmental ideology, but a moral responsibility.
Ethical investing from a Catholic perspective requires assessing the environmental impact of companies, without falling into the ideological simplifications typical of certain ESG approaches.

The guiding criterion is intergenerational responsibility. Creation is both a gift and a task.

• The Common Good

The common good is the principle that harmonizes all the others.
It is not enough for a company to be profitable. It must contribute positively to integral human development.

A Catholic investment portfolio should be structured with a long-term vision, recognizing that profit is legitimate—but never absolute.

The Virtues of the Christian Investor

Structure is necessary, but not sufficient. Without personal virtue, there is no true coherence.

• Prudence

Prudence is the virtue that enables one to discern the concrete good in each situation.
In Christian investing, it involves analyzing risks, understanding markets, and avoiding impulsive decisions. Good intentions are not enough; technical competence is required.

Prudence calls for proper formation and the support of investment firms that integrate ethics and professionalism.

• Justice

Justice leads us to give each person his or her due. The Catholic investor does not seek only to maximize returns, but to participate in building a more just economy. This includes the responsible exercise of shareholder voting and dialogue with companies.

Faith-consistent investing includes active engagement.

• Fortitude

Fortitude enables investors to uphold ethical criteria even when the market pressures them otherwise.
There will be highly profitable sectors that are not morally acceptable. Fortitude sustains coherence when it entails economic sacrifice.

Without fortitude, Catholic investing dissolves into opportunism.

• Temperance

Temperance moderates the disordered pursuit of profit. The market encourages immediacy and speculation. The Christian investor is called to a calm, long-term vision, avoiding greed and short-termism.

• Responsibility

To invest is to exercise co-responsibility for the world. Capital is not neutral. It shapes culture, companies, and social structures. For this reason, Catholic investing is a concrete form of apostolate in the economic sphere. It requires awareness, formation, and appropriate tools.

Faith, Structure, and Virtue

Catholic Social Teaching is not a list of prohibitions. It is a comprehensive vision of the human person and of the economy.

Authentic Catholic investing combines:

• Objective principles to structure faith-consistent portfolios.
• Personal virtues to live by investing as a vocation.

When faith and finance are integrated, the market ceases to be a neutral space and becomes a field of witness.

Faith-based investing is no longer a marginal concern. In recent years, a growing number of Catholic investors, religious institutions, foundations, and families have begun to ask whether it is possible to invest professionally without compromising the principles that guide their lives.

For decades, the relationship between faith and finance was often presented as an unavoidable tension. Today, however, there is a deeper awareness that money is not morally neutral and that every investment decision has real consequences for people, society, and culture. It is in this context that Faithful Investing has gained momentum, often referred to as Catholic investing or faith-based investing grounded in Catholic values.

What does it really mean to invest in line with one’s faith?

At first glance, speaking about evangelization in the financial sphere may seem abstract. Yet speaking about Faithful Investing is not about describing a specific financial technique, but about expressing a way of understanding investment itself. Faith-based investing begins with a simple yet demanding conviction: capital should serve the common good and must not support activities that undermine human dignity, family, life, or the care of creation.

From this perspective, investing for Catholics is rooted in the Social Doctrine of the Church and applies stable moral criteria that help discern which companies, sectors, or financial instruments are legitimate investment options and which are not. This is precisely why Faithful Investing differs both from purely speculative investing and from more generic approaches to socially responsible investing.

Investing in this way does not mean withdrawing from the market, but rather engaging with it responsibly, professionally, and with moral awareness.

Catholic investing and ESG: apparent similarities, profound differences

Catholic investing is often associated with ESG investing. While both approaches share a concern for social and environmental impact, their foundations are fundamentally different. ESG relies on changing and often ambiguous indicators, whereas Faith-based investing is grounded in objective moral principles.

It is not uncommon to find companies with strong ESG ratings that are nevertheless involved in activities incompatible with Christian values. For this reason, many Catholic investment advisors and Christian-based investment companies consider ESG alone insufficient to build a truly Catholic investment portfolio.

What types of investments are excluded by Catholic Investing?

Catholic investing requires rigorous ethical discernment. Certain activities are incompatible by their very nature with faith-based investing. Given the complexity of today’s financial markets, this discernment cannot be intuitive; it requires reliable information and professional stock screening tools capable of applying Catholic values consistently and transparently.

Catholic investment funds: what investors should know

In recent years, a growing number of Catholic investment funds have emerged in response to this increasing demand. However, not all of them apply the same ethical criteria or the same level of moral analysis. For this reason, before investing in Catholic mutual funds, Christian mutual funds, or Catholic responsible investment funds, it is essential to examine their methodology and assess to what extent they genuinely integrate Catholic values in investing. This is where professional investing tools become essential.

Certified funds and ethical assurance 

In this context, certified funds play a particularly important role. At Altum, these funds are analyzed and certified according to strict faith-based investing criteria, ensuring that their investment decisions are aligned with the Social Doctrine of the Church and with Catholic values in investing. This certification is not limited to an initial review but involves ongoing monitoring, providing transparency and confidence to Catholic investors. As a result, those who choose these certified funds can be assured that their assets are managed professionally, ethically, and in full coherence with their convictions, without sacrificing rigorous financial management.

The key role of professional investing tools 

Faithful Investing is not an amateur approach to financial markets. On the contrary, it requires a high level of technical rigor. Professional investing tools enable Catholic investment advisors and Christian investment companies to apply ethical criteria while maintaining solid financial analysis.

Thanks to these tools, it is now possible to manage complex portfolios, compare faith-aligned alternatives, run scenario analyses, and make informed decisions that respect both faith and financial objectives.

Can faith-based investing be profitable? 

This is perhaps one of the most frequently asked questions. Experience shows that ethical investing and financial performance are not opposing concepts. In fact, purposeful investing often encourages a long-term perspective, reduces certain risks, and supports more sustainable business models.

The key is not to reject profitability, but to understand it as a means rather than an absolute end.

Faithful Investing is not simply an investment technique, but a way of integrating faith, reason, and economic responsibility. For many Catholic investors, it represents a concrete way of living their vocation in the financial sphere, using capital as a tool of service.

Investing in line with one’s faith is ultimately a way of affirming that the economy, too, can be placed at the service of truth, human dignity, and the common good.

For more Faithful Investing, click here.

Altum Faithful Investing does not simply propose an ethical investment methodology, or a sophisticated version of socially responsible investing. Faithful Investing is, above all, a concrete way of living one’s faith within the economic sphere—a call to evangelize one of the most influential, and often most dehumanized, arenas of modern society: the world of finance.

In a culture where capital is frequently treated as morally neutral and profitability is presented as the ultimate benchmark, Faithful Investing reaffirms a central principle of Catholic Social Teaching: every economic decision is also a moral decision.

For Catholic investors, religious institutions, foundations, and families seeking coherence with their faith, a fundamental question arises: How can one invest professionally and rigorously without compromising Catholic convictions?

Evangelizing Finance: Faith, Coherence, and Responsibility

At first glance, speaking about evangelization in the financial sphere may seem abstract. Yet the Church has consistently taught that economics cannot be separated from morality, and that capital must serve the common good.

Faithful Investing is grounded in three core convictions:

1. Money is not an end in itself, but a means.
2. Moral neutrality in investing is a myth: every investment supports certain business activities and practices.
3. Faith must permeate every dimension of life, including the stewardship of wealth.

From this perspective, Catholic investing becomes a way of transforming economic structures from within.

The Altum Investment Guidelines: Bringing Faith into Concrete Decisions

One of the greatest risks in ethical investing is remaining at the level of vague declarations. For this reason, Altum has developed the Altum Investment Guidelines—a clear and structured framework for applying Faithful Investing in a professional and practical way.

Rooted in Catholic Social Teaching, these guidelines are built upon four pillars:

1. Promotion of Human Life

Faithful Investing seeks to build portfolios that support a culture of life. This includes avoiding investments in companies involved in abortion, contraception, indiscriminate weapons, or euthanasia.

It also excludes companies directly or indirectly engaged in embryonic stem cell research, research using stem cells derived from fetal tissue or embryos, or human cloning.

To ensure consistency and clarity, the Altum Faithful Investing team develops specific investment policies addressing each of these areas. These policies help investors translate the Catholic Magisterium into practical financial decisions.

A pharmaceutical company may demonstrate strong financial performance, yet still be excluded if a meaningful part of its business is connected to abortion or if it develops products through embryonic stem cell research. Faithful Investing goes beyond financial ratios—it applies a rigorous ethical filter.

2. Promotion of Human Dignity

Investing in alignment with faith means building portfolios that respect the dignity of workers, limit the spread of pornography, promote freedom from addiction, and safeguard religious liberty.

At Altum, we seek to invest in companies and assets that demonstrate responsible management practices, uphold human dignity, and operate with integrity in their relationships with employees, competitors, customers, and suppliers.

We avoid companies significantly involved in the production, distribution, or sale of pornographic material. We positively value businesses that help individuals overcome addictive behaviors, particularly those linked to cannabis or gambling.

We also exclude investments in governments or corporations that promote or engage in religious persecution or violate the fundamental right to religious freedom.

Companies with opaque supply chains or involvement in labor exploitation scandals are incompatible with a Catholic portfolio—even if they meet conventional ESG standards.

3. Protection of the Family and the Social Order

The family is the foundational cell of society. Accordingly, the Altum Investment Guidelines favor companies whose activities recognize and promote the social value and virtues of family life.

We avoid investing in companies or assets that actively oppose the Catholic understanding of marriage and family.

This approach extends far beyond traditional socially responsible investing, which rarely incorporates these considerations.

4. Care for Creation and the Common Good

Faith-consistent investing also requires an integral ecology—one that respects creation without falling into greenwashing, and that seeks to preserve the natural world for the integral development of future generations.

Companies involved in serious environmental controversies or abuse of natural resources are excluded from our portfolios. At the same time, we seek to promote positive environmental initiatives undertaken by governments and corporations that uphold the highest standards in their environmental conduct.

Faithful Investing vs. ESG: An Essential Difference

Though often conflated, Faithful Investing and ESG are not equivalent.

ESG frameworks are built upon criteria that can vary over time and often reflect shifting cultural or political trends. Faithful Investing, by contrast, rests on objective and enduring moral principles.

For Catholic investors, this distinction is critical. Faith is not a passing trend, and ethical standards cannot fluctuate with changing cultural, social, or regulatory contexts. Faithful Investing is anchored in the permanent moral principles of Catholic Social Teaching. Investing with integrity requires a stable and consistent framework grounded in values that do not change.

Professional Investment Tools at the Service of Faith

Evangelizing finance does not mean abandoning technical rigor. On the contrary, Catholic investing demands professional excellence.

Altum’s mission is precisely this: to place professional investment tools at the service of faith. Solutions such as Altum Explorer enable investors to integrate ethical and financial analysis, applying customized filters based on the Altum Investment Guidelines. This makes it possible to clearly identify which companies are compatible with Catholic values—and which are not.

With these tools, investors can build genuinely Catholic portfolios, apply faith-based equity screening, and manage wealth with coherence, transparency, and technical excellence.

A Faith That Is Also Invested

Faithful Investing demonstrates that faith and finance are not only compatible—they can strengthen one another. Evangelizing the financial world becomes possible when clear principles, professional tools, and a deep conviction align: capital must serve the human person.

At Altum, we believe that investing well is also a form of witness. And today, perhaps more than ever, the world needs investors who live their faith coherently—even in the markets.

For more Faithful Investing, click here.

More and more Catholic investors and religious institutions are asking how they can place their assets at the service of their mission without compromising their values. The good news is that this is now possible through ethical investing, socially responsible investing, and, more specifically, faith-based investing rooted in Catholic teaching.

Is it right for a Catholic to invest money?

The Church clearly teaches that investing is lawful and legitimate. We are stewards — not absolute owners — of the goods entrusted to us. This Christian understanding of prudent stewardship calls us to manage resources with responsibility and generosity.

Investing allows capital to contribute to economic and social development by supporting productive activities that generate employment, innovation, and prosperity. However, the key question is not whether one invests, but how one invests. Catholic responsible investing cannot finance activities that undermine human life, human dignity, the family, or the care of creation.

Principles of faith-based investing

Catholic values investing is built upon four fundamental pillars:

1. Respect for human life, from conception to natural death.
2. Defense of human dignity, avoiding any form of exploitation or abuse.
3. Protection of the family as the fundamental cell of society.
4. Care for creation, promoting sustainable and responsible development.

These principles, grounded in the Social Teaching of the Church, provide a stable ethical framework and a moral roadmap that remains consistent over time.

Ethical investing and socially responsible investing from a Catholic perspective

Socially responsible investing has gained popularity in recent years, but Catholic investing goes a step further. It is not enough to assess environmental, social, and governance factors alone; a Christian anthropology that places the human person at the center of society and the economy is essential.

Catholic ethical investing combines two inseparable dimensions:

• Exclusion of wrongdoing, avoiding sectors such as abortion, pornography, indiscriminate weapons, or research involving human embryos.
• Promotion of the good, investing in companies that actively contribute to the common good through just and responsible practices that do not conflict with Catholic moral teaching.

How can you know if a company aligns with Catholic values?

One of the greatest challenges for Catholic investors is access to reliable and transparent information. Many companies conceal practices contrary to Christian values behind complex structures or ambiguous corporate responsibility policies.

For this reason, it is essential to rely on a stock screening tool that allows for a thorough analysis of a company’s real activities. This is where professional investing tools become indispensable, making it possible to apply a rigorous ethical filter without sacrificing financial analysis.

Altum Explorer and professional investing tools

Altum Explorer is a professional Catholic investing tool created to evaluate thousands of publicly listed companies worldwide. Its methodology is based on the Altum Investment Guidelines, fully aligned with the Social Teaching of the Church.

Through this Catholic stock screener, investors can:

• Identify companies that are incompatible with Catholic values.
• Build customized Catholic investment portfolios.pu
• Compare ethically coherent alternatives.
• Make informed decisions using professional standards.

This makes Altum Explorer a key ally for Catholic investment advisors, Catholic investment funds, and institutional investors seeking both coherence and technical excellence.

Profitability and coherence are not opposites

One of the most common misconceptions is that faith-based investing requires sacrificing financial returns. Experience shows that it is entirely possible to build solid and competitive portfolios by applying clear ethical criteria.

Purposeful investing does not renounce financial performance; rather, it integrates it within a broader vision of integral human development. Coherence fosters trust, stability, and a long-term perspective.

Bearing witness through financial decisions

Investing according to Catholic values is a concrete way of integrating faith into everyday life. Every financial decision has a real impact on society. Aligning faith and finance is a way of living the Christian vocation within the economic sphere.

Ultimately, Catholic investing is not a trend, but a coherent response to the call to live the faith in every dimension of life — including financial decisions.

Faith-based investing stems from a deep conviction: money can and should serve the common good. Investing is not merely a way to grow wealth; it is an opportunity to help build a more just and human economy grounded in Catholic values in investing. 

Catholic investing begins with a simple truth: we are not the ultimate owners of our assets but stewards called to manage them faithfully, prudently, and generously. Every financial decision becomes a moral act, because every dollar invested supports a productive activity — for better or worse. 

Thus, to invest faithfully is to ask: where is my money working? Am I supporting companies that uphold human dignity, family, and creation, or am I unknowingly financing those that go against these same principles? 

Ethical investing and coherence with faith 

Ethical investing is about coherence. It’s not only about avoiding harm but about promoting good — investing in businesses that protect life, foster justice, and promote human development. This transforms socially responsible investing into a genuine act of faith lived out in the marketplace. 

Rooted in the Church’s Social Teaching, this vision reminds us that economics has a moral dimension. Money is a means to serve the common good, and faith-based investing becomes a concrete way to bear witness to one’s faith — even through financial decisions. 

Technology serving faith: Altum App and Altum Explorer 

To achieve this alignment, Altum has developed professional investing tools designed to help investors make informed, faith-consistent choices. 

Altum Explorer is a stock screening tool that evaluates thousands of listed companies worldwide, ranking them by their compatibility with Catholic teaching. Its rigorous methodology enables investors to detect when a company violates Church principles and find compliant alternatives. 

Meanwhile, Altum App is tailored for individual investors seeking an intuitive and accessible way to assess whether their portfolios are aligned with their faith. 

Together, these platforms empower both institutions and individuals to create portfolios that embody Catholic investing — ethical, transparent, and professionally managed. 

Faithful investing: profitability with purpose 

To invest faithfully does not mean sacrificing financial returns but infusing them with purpose. Faith-based investing shows that responsibility, integrity, and profitability can coexist when guided by the Gospel. 

When your faith and finances are aligned, you live with coherence and conviction, contributing to the common good through the companies you support. 

At Altum Faithful Investing, we believe investing should be faithful — faithful to the person, faithful to the Gospel, and faithful to the values that give meaning to our economic life. 

For more Faith-based Investing, click here.

The Social Teaching of the Church (STC) provides a stable, profound, and coherent moral framework for discerning where and how to invest. This guide aims to show how to apply these principles in a practical, professional, and rigorous way—without renouncing profitability or financial excellence.

What Is Faithful Investing and Why Is It Essential for Catholic Investors?

Faithful Investing—or faith-consistent investing—is an investment approach explicitly based on the principles of the Social Teaching of the Church. Unlike generic ethical investing or socially responsible investing, Faithful Investing does not rely on changing criteria or volatile cultural consensus. Instead, it is grounded in objective and immutable principles.

From this perspective, investing ceases to be a neutral act. Every financial decision implies supporting certain business models and social structures. For this reason, Catholic investing requires moral discernment and responsibility.

The Social Teaching of the Church as the Foundation of Catholic Investing

The Social Teaching of the Church is not a technical manual of economics, but a moral compass. It reminds us that money is not an end in itself but a means, and that the economy is not an autonomous system detached from ethics. It is called to serve the human person and contribute to the common good.

The STC provides principles that illuminate human action also in the financial sphere. Saint John Paul II, in Centesimus Annus, reminded us that when the economy is separated from its moral dimension, it ultimately destroys itself.

Applied to finance, the Social Teaching of the Church reminds us that:

• Money is a means, not an end
• Profit is legitimate, but must be ordered toward the common good
• Economic structures must be at the service of the human person

Therefore, ethical investing from a Catholic perspective cannot be limited to maximizing returns without considering the real impact of the companies being financed.

Altum Investment Guidelines: The Four Pillars of Faith-Consistent Investing

At Altum Faithful Investing, we have drawn upon the teachings of the Social Teaching of the Church to develop our Altum Investment Guidelines. Through them, we seek to integrate Christian values into every investment decision, following four fundamental pillars: Promotion of Life, Promotion of the Family, Promotion of Human Dignity, and the Care and Protection of Creation.

These principles not only guide our decisions but also provide a clear framework for building investment portfolios that are fully aligned with the Catholic faith, without compromising financial objectives.

1. Respect for Life

At Altum, all our decisions are rooted in absolute respect for human life, from its beginning at conception to its natural end. The Social Teaching of the Church affirms the sacred and inviolable character of life, which leads us to exclude any investment in companies whose activities contradict this essential principle.

2. Human Dignity

The Social Teaching of the Church places the dignity of the human person at its very core. Every human being is created in the image and likeness of God and therefore deserves full respect in all circumstances.

3. Family

The family, as the basic institution of society, is another central axis guiding Altum’s investment decisions. Its protection and strengthening must be promoted in all areas of social and economic life.

4. Care for Creation

Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’ emphasizes that the protection of the natural environment is both a moral and spiritual responsibility. At Altum, we understand care for creation as an indispensable element for achieving true social justice, since natural resources are not merely material assets but gifts from God entrusted to our responsible stewardship.

Professional Investing Tools at the Service of Ethical Discernment

For many years, the main obstacle for Catholic investors was the lack of reliable information. Today, this has changed thanks to professional investing tools specifically designed for Catholic investing:

• For professional investors, Altum Explorer provides easy access to comprehensive, rigorous, and transparent analysis of thousands of global companies.
• For individual investors, the Altum App allows companies to be evaluated using the same criteria, making it easier to build portfolios that are fully aligned with the faith.

The Social Teaching of the Church reminds us that faith must permeate all aspects of life, including economic decisions. Faithful Investing is not a renunciation, but a call to coherence.

Investing well is not only about achieving returns, but about investing with meaning. Because every euro invested is also a vote for the kind of world we want to help build.

“Tell me how you invest, and I’ll tell you who you are.”

This saying, often applied to personal relationships, is just as relevant in the world of finance. Yet many investors are unaware of where their money is actually invested and, consequently, what activities they are supporting.

When you decide to invest, you are doing more than seeking a financial return. Every dollar invested supports a specific business activity, for better or for worse. Investing is never morally neutral.

For Christians, aligning faith and finances is not optional. That is why Catholic investing offers a coherent, responsible, and professional way to manage wealth.

Here are three key reasons to invest with faith — and with sound judgment.

Every investment decision is a moral decision

Investing always has consequences. Even when it appears purely technical, it shapes the world we live in.

If you avoid certain products because they contradict your beliefs, does it make sense to invest in companies that promote those same practices — such as pornography, contraception, or abortion-related pharmaceuticals?

Ethical investing recognizes that not everything is acceptable in the pursuit of profit. From a Christian perspective, money must serve human dignity and the common good.

Catholic investing applies this principle by excluding companies whose activities or practices undermine:

• human life,
• personal dignity,
• family,
• and the care of creation.

Investing with faith means refraining from financing what contradicts our values, even indirectly.

Faith-aligned investing promotes the common good without sacrificing returns

One common misconception is that faith-based investing requires giving up profitability. Experience shows otherwise.

When faith and finance are aligned:

1. wealth is generated responsibly,
2. ethical business models are supported,
3. and society benefits as a whole.

Faith-based investing does not only exclude harmful activities. It also actively promotes good by supporting companies that respect workers, serve society, and operate responsibly. Moreover, as highlighted in the Practical Guide to Catholic Investing, portfolios built on strong ethical criteria can be just as competitive from a financial performance perspective.

Investing with faith is not investing “blindly.” It means investing with a long-term vision, clear principles, and professional investment management, fully aligned with Catholic investing and faith-based investing.

The existence of professional tools now makes Catholic investing possible

For years, Catholic investors lacked reliable tools to apply ethical criteria effectively.

How could one know what companies truly do?

How could moral discernment be applied without compromising technical excellence?

Today, professional solutions exist.

Thanks to Altum Explorer, a professional stock screening tool designed for Catholic investing, investors can analyze thousands of companies and assess whether they align with Christian values. This professional investing tool enables investors to:

• identify unethical activities,
• build fully faith-aligned portfolios,
• and make informed, responsible decisions.

Investing “with faith” means applying that analysis through clear moral principles.

Catholic investing brings both dimensions together.

Our actions define us — including our financial decisions. Catholic investing is a practical way to live out one’s faith, remain consistent, and actively contribute to the common good. Investing with faith and sound judgment is not only possible. It is a responsibility. Make sure your investments never compromise your integrity. Let your financial decisions truly reflect how you live and what you believe.

Is investing according to ESG criteria enough to ensure coherence with my faith and Catholic values?

The rise of ethical investing and socially responsible investing has undoubtedly represented a step forward compared to purely profit-driven financial models. However, for Catholic investors, ESG often raises serious concerns regarding moral consistency, long-term stability, and alignment with the Social Doctrine of the Church.

This is where Catholic investing and faith-based investing offer a deeper and more coherent alternative.

What is ESG investing and why has it become so influential?

ESG investing evaluates companies based on three main criteria: Environmental, Social, and Governance factors. These indicators aim to measure how companies manage environmental risks, treat employees and communities, and structure corporate governance.

As a result, ESG has become the backbone of modern socially responsible investing, influencing asset managers, pension funds, and institutional investors worldwide. Many see ESG as a practical way to integrate ethics into finance.

However, while ESG may encourage certain positive behaviors, it does not provide a complete moral framework—especially for those seeking Catholic values in investing.

The structural limitations of ESG for Catholic investors

One of the main weaknesses of ESG investing lies in its subjectivity. ESG scores vary widely depending on the rating agency, methodology, and cultural context. What is considered “socially responsible” today may change tomorrow.

For Catholic investors, these contradictions make ESG insufficient as a tool for Catholic responsible investing. ESG does not distinguish between negotiable and non-negotiable moral issues, nor does it rely on objective, permanent ethical principles.

Catholic investing: beyond ethical labels

Catholic investing is not simply another version of ethical investing. It is rooted in a moral vision that places the human person at the center of economic life.

Grounded in the Social Doctrine of the Church, Catholic investing evaluates economic activity through principles that are stable, universal, and not subject to ideological trends. These include:

• Respect for human life from conception to natural death
• Human dignity
• The protection of the family
• The care of creation
• The pursuit of the common good

This framework allows Catholic investors to practice purposeful investing with clarity and coherence.

This distinction is essential. ESG may be a starting point for some investors, but for Catholics, it cannot replace a framework grounded in objective moral teaching.

A common misconception is that Catholic or Christian investing requires sacrificing returns. In reality, applying clear ethical criteria often strengthens risk management and long-term performance.

By avoiding companies exposed to legal, reputational, and regulatory risks, Catholic responsible investing contributes to sustainable value creation. Integrity and profitability are not opposites—they reinforce each other.

Faith-based Investing: Investing with purpose in a changing world

In the ESG era, Catholic investors are called to go further than labels and marketing claims. True faith-based investing requires discernment, formation, and the right tools.

Investing coherently becomes a form of testimony—a way of living faith consistently, even in financial decisions.

One of the main challenges Catholic investors have faced historically is access to reliable, structured, and transparent information. How can one know whether a company truly aligns with Catholic moral principles? How can a portfolio be constructed with rigor, without sacrificing professional financial analysis?

The answer lies in professional investing tools specifically designed for faith-based investing.

Altum Explorer is a professional stock screening tool developed to serve Catholic investors seeking coherence and excellence.

Unlike generic ESG tools, Altum Explorer:

• Applies filters based on the Social Doctrine of the Church
• Analyzes companies’ real economic activities, not just public policies
• Identifies hidden ethical risks
• Suggests compliant alternatives

It functions as a Catholic investing tool for asset managers, advisors, and institutions committed to building truly faith-aligned portfolios.

Faith-based investing offers a solid response to the limitations of ESG. Through Catholic investing, investors can align their capital with their deepest convictions without compromising professional standards.

At Altum, we believe coherence is not optional. It is a call to live faith fully—also in finance—by placing the human person, truth, and the common good at the center of every investment decision.

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Faithful Investing emerges precisely as the answer to this concern. While it is often compared to ESG or socially responsible investing, Faithful Investing differs fundamentally in its principles, methodology, and purpose. Understanding this difference is essential for any investor seeking ethical investing, professional rigor, and full coherence with the Social Doctrine of the Church. 

What Is ESG Investing and Why Has It Become So Popular? 

ESG investing—Environmental, Social, and Governance—has become one of the most widely adopted frameworks within socially responsible investing. Its goal is to evaluate companies based on non-financial factors related to sustainability, social impact, and corporate governance, incorporating these metrics into traditional financial analysis. 

From a technical standpoint, ESG aims to identify long-term risks that may affect financial performance. As a result, it has been embraced by large asset managers, institutional investors, and regulators. However, when examined through the lens of Catholic investing, ESG reveals significant ethical shortcomings. 

The Ethical Limits of ESG Investing 

1. Subjectivity and Inconsistency in ESG Criteria 

One of the fundamental weaknesses of ESG investing lies in its structural subjectivity. There is no single, universal ESG standard. Each rating agency applies its own methodology, weighting criteria differently and interpreting indicators according to its own framework. 

As a consequence, the same company may receive vastly different ESG scores depending on the agency assessing it. For Catholic investors, this lack of consistency undermines the possibility of genuine moral discernment. Catholic responsible investing cannot rest on fluctuating metrics or socially driven interpretations. 

2. High ESG Scores and Violations of Human Dignity 

It is not uncommon to find companies with strong ESG ratings that are simultaneously involved in activities contrary to human dignity—such as funding abortion, engaging in embryo research, promoting ideologies that undermine the family, or tolerating unjust labor practices. 

What Is Faithful Investing? 

Faithful Investing, also known as faith-based investing, is an investment approach that explicitly integrates the moral principles of the Social Doctrine of the Church into financial decision-making. 

Unlike ESG, Faithful Investing acknowledges that investing is never morally neutral. Every investment supports certain business practices and social outcomes. Therefore, Faithful Investing is built on a twofold criterion: 

• Excluding companies whose activities contradict Catholic moral teaching 

• Promoting the common good through responsible ownership and engagement 

In this sense, Faithful Investing represents a form of purposeful investing that aligns capital with faith. 

The Social Doctrine of the Church as the Foundation of Faithful Investing 

The Social Doctrine of the Church provides the ethical framework underlying Faithful Investing. Rather than offering technical solutions, it proposes enduring moral principles that guide economic activity toward integral human development. 

Unchanging Moral Principles vs. Shifting ESG Standards 

A defining difference between Faithful Investing and ESG lies in the stability of its criteria. ESG standards evolve with political priorities, cultural trends, and social consensus. In contrast, Faithful Investing is grounded in immutable principles. 

Respect for life, human dignity, the family, and the care of creation form the pillars of authentic Catholic investing, offering moral clarity and long-term coherence. 

Why ESG Fails Catholic Investors 

ESG ultimately fails Catholic investors because it avoids moral judgment. Its purpose is not to discern good from evil, but to assess financial or reputational risk. For Catholic investors, this neutrality is insufficient. 

Catholic responsible investing requires avoiding the financing of intrinsically immoral activities—even when they are profitable or socially accepted. For this reason, many Catholic investment advisors and Christian wealth management firms recognize ESG as, at best, a preliminary filter, never a definitive ethical standard. 

Professional Investing Tools for Faith-Based Investing 

Altum Explorer: A Catholic Stock Screening Tool 

Applying Faithful Investing rigorously requires professional investing tools specifically designed for faith-based analysis. Altum Explorer is a Catholic stock screening tool developed to evaluate companies according to Catholic moral principles. 

Altum Explorer enables investors to: 

• Apply a Catholic stock screener with ethical rigor 

• Identify companies incompatible with Catholic teaching 

• Build a Catholic investment portfolio 

• Identify ethically compliant alternatives 

It is a genuine Catholic investing tool serving Catholic investment advisors, institutions, and families seeking coherence without compromising professional standards. 

Investing with Coherence: A Moral Responsibility 

Ethical investing is not merely about reducing risk—it is about moral responsibility. Money is not an end in itself, but a means at the service of the common good. 

Faithful Investing allows Catholic investors to live their faith consistently, including in financial decisions, demonstrating that profitability and moral integrity can reinforce one another

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