Biblically Responsible Investing
Your investments are an extension of your faith. We help you own companies you can support in good conscience — and avoid funding what stands against your values.
What Is BRI?
Biblically Responsible Investing (BRI) is the practice of aligning your portfolio with biblical values — intentionally owning companies whose products and practices honor God, while screening out those that profit from what conflicts with your faith.
"For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." — Matthew 6:21
You fund what you own
When you own shares of a company, your capital helps fund what that company does — for better or for worse.
How matters as much as why
Pursuing returns is good stewardship. But how those returns are earned matters just as much to a believer.
Conviction without compromise
We don't offer BRI as an add-on for some clients. Every portfolio we manage is biblically responsible.
How BRI Began
A Movement We Helped Pioneer
Christian Financial Advisors® didn't discover Biblically Responsible Investing after it became popular — our founder was part of the small group that helped start it.
In the beginning, Biblically Responsible Investing didn't even have a name — we didn't know what to call it. I just started asking what these companies were really up to, and the Lord turned it into a movement.
A boycott opens Bob's eyes
Christian organizations — Focus on the Family, the Family Research Council, and the Southern Baptist Convention — publicly challenged The Walt Disney Company over its decision to extend health benefits to same-sex partners of employees, the "Gay Days" events held at its theme parks, and films and programming they considered anti-family. The Southern Baptist Convention ultimately called for a national boycott of Disney. Bob first heard the issue raised on Focus on the Family's radio program, and it sparked a question he couldn't shake: if Disney was funding causes that ran against his faith, what were the other companies in his clients' portfolios quietly supporting?
The first biblically responsible funds
Art Ally founded the Timothy Plan in Orlando — the first family of mutual funds built on values-based screening. Bob became one of its earliest investors and one of its top advisors in those formative years. Around the same time, researcher Scott Fehrenbacher was compiling data on corporate practices — work that grew into the eVALUEator screening tool still used across the industry today.
From "Morally" to "Biblically" Responsible
Early on, the approach was called Morally Responsible Investing. But morality can shift with culture, so the movement anchored its standard in Scripture instead — and Biblically Responsible Investing became the name that stuck.
Positive screening takes hold
The movement grew beyond simply avoiding harm. Firms like Eventide pioneered investing in companies that actively contribute to human flourishing, and Inspire Investing — founded by Robert Netzly, whom Bob hosted in New Braunfels in those early days — became one of the largest providers of biblically responsible ETFs.
Still standing for truth
Alongside fellow pioneers like Mark Minnella, Dwight Short, and Dan Hardt, Christian Financial Advisors® has practiced BRI from the very beginning — and has never wavered. Every portfolio we manage remains 100% biblically responsible.
Some advisors are biblically responsible only for the clients who ask for it. But a house divided cannot stand. We've always been 100% biblically responsible — in every portfolio we manage.
How We Screen
Avoiding Harm, Seeking Good
Biblically responsible screening works in two directions — and never replaces sound financial analysis.
Companies We Seek
- Pro-family values and ethical leadership
- Fair, respectful treatment of employees
- Products and services that genuinely serve people
- Businesses contributing to human flourishing
Companies We Avoid
- Profiting from abortion
- Pornography and anti-family content
- Gambling, alcohol, and tobacco
- Other products and practices that conflict with biblical values
Then comes the financial analysis
Values screening never replaces financial discipline. Every remaining company still goes through rigorous fundamental analysis — valuation, financial health, and forward outlook. Screening is one part of our broader process; see how it fits into the way we actively manage portfolios on our Investment Management page.
Common Questions
Does Investing Biblically Mean Sacrificing Returns?
Do I have to give up returns to invest this way?
We don't believe honoring God and pursuing sound long-term results are at odds. Screening narrows the universe of investable companies, but a disciplined, actively managed, well-diversified approach can still pursue your financial goals.
Past performance is never a guarantee of future results, and all investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal.
How do you know what a company is really involved in?
We rely on established screening research — the same kind of data that has powered the BRI movement for three decades — combined with our own ongoing review. Corporate behavior changes, so screening is continuous, not a one-time check.
Is biblically responsible investing only for some of your clients?
No. Every portfolio we manage is biblically responsible. It's not a separate product or an upgrade — it's simply how we invest.
Invest in a Way That Reflects Your Faith
Let's talk about what it looks like to align your portfolio with your values — without compromising on sound financial stewardship.