There is a widespread feeling that the practice of economics has become technocratic and detached from commitments to broader ethical, moral and religious values. That feeling has contributed to pervasive, destructive backlashes against globalization. Recognizing the truth in these sentiments, this meeting advances from two premises: first, that mankind’s spiritual and practical developments cannot be separated from each other; and second, that spiritual poverty engenders social and economic fragmentation and erosion. Four prominent international economic policy-makers – Anwar Ibrahim, Michel Camdessus, Emma Rothschild, and Amartya Sen– were invited to explore the relationship between faith, economic and distributional justice, and policy applications. These four experts were assembled not only to tap their personal knowledge, but to initiate a new dialogue among the three Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
