Corporate Ethics: Am I my brother's keeper?
by Dan Doriani
Solomon says, "Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil… and a three-fold cord is not quickly broken." A band of allies can accomplish what no individual can (Eccles. 4:9-12). Because Western culture tilts toward individualism, we affirm the corporate or communal thrust of Israel's law as it touches work. Biblical narratives quietly make this point by juxtaposing descriptions of godless societies and Israel. In Babel, in Genesis 11, humanity unites in rebellion against God. In Genesis 12, God counters by calling Abraham and promising "I will make of you a great nation… and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed" (Gen. 12:2-3). In Genesis 18-19, God calls Abraham's household to do "righteousness and justice," in contrast with Sodom, a city marked by lusts and violence (18:19-20, 19:4-5). So ethics is a social concern, "not simply a compendium of moral teaching to enable… individuals to lead privately upright lives." When we read Scripture, we should ask both "What does this require of me?" and "How does it shape our community?
Cain's question, "Am I my brother's keeper?" sounds reasonable to an individualist, but not to an Israelite, because the people did keep each other (Gen. 4:9). Consider this law: "When you build a new house, make a parapet around your roof so that you may not bring the guilt of bloodshed on house if someone falls from the roof" (Deut. 22:8). Because Israelites worked, entertained, and slept on their roofs, it made sense to build retaining walls - parapets - around them. In the heat, this kept Joshua, that reckless child, or Aunt Abishag, an overactive sleeper, from tumbling off the roof. It prevented the "guilt of bloodshed."
An individualist wants to claim "I would never fall off a roof. Why should I build walls to safeguard fools?" This law says fools are our responsibility. If they fall off our roof, we are guilty, because we didn't protect our neighbor. Justice and mercy are core values for societies as well as individuals (Matt. 23:23, Mic. 6:8). A just and merciful city protects people who are reckless enough to pitch off a roof, or something equally idiotic.
We may think, "I would never fall from a roof," but everyone has self-destructive tendencies. Without God's help, we all destroy ourselves. But God loves people who fall off buildings. The command to put up parapets is a gospel principle. It means God chooses to protect fools and addicts, liars and thieves. God's love for self-damaging people led Jesus to his work, the work of redemption. That redemption is the foundation for all that follows and we have a right to believe it renews our work as it renews our soul.
Dr. Dan Doriani is Executive Director of The Center for Faith & Work Saint Louis and serves as vice president at large and professor of biblical and systematic theology at Covenant Theological Seminary.