Exploring the theological foundation of Corporate Social Responsibility in Islam, Christianity and Judaism for Strengthening Compliance and Reporting: An Eclectic Approach

Abstract

Religion in the contemporary times has potentials from which conventional models and theories could leverage for public wellbeing. Considering the<br />moral and ethical dimensions of corporate social responsibility (CSR), understanding this nebulous concept from the religious lenses could help strengthen CSR compliance and reporting in the industrial societies, where<br />religions play direct and indirect role in corporate governance and people‘s lifestyle. This paper explores eclectic sources to provide answer to the questions: Does CSR have theological foundation in Islam Christianity and Judaism? Can religions strengthen CSR and fortify compliance and reporting? The authors sourced the required qualitative data from journal articles, Islamic jurisprudence, Judaic sources and Biblical texts as well as relevant online resources on the subject. The extractions from eclectic sources were subjected to content analysis from which conclusions on the two questions were established. The findings indicate that CSR has theological foundation in the three religions, and religious ethics and values could be potent drivers for strengthening CSR and reporting.

Corporate social responsibility and financial performance in Saudi Arabia

“…Hence, CSR is a way of promoting social trends in order to enhance society’s basic order, which we define as consisting of obligations that cover both the legal framework and social conventions (Falck and Heblich, 2007). In the past, several conceptual, theoretical and empirical studies had been conducted to provide insights into the evolution, theory and practice of CSR, but the contribution from a religious angle is few and peripheral (Raimi et al , 2014). The present study, therefore, intends to fill this gap in the body of knowledge by introducing a religious social dimension such as Zakat[1].…”

Towards an Understanding of Social Responsibility Within the Church of England

“…Calkins 2000;Weaver and Agle 2002;Longenecker et al 2004). Raimi et al (2013) produced evidence to suggest that the greater orientation towards socially responsible behaviour amongst religiously motivated individuals can spill over and influence awareness of social responsibility concerns in both commercial and non-profit making organisations. More specifically, religious organisations tend to link this greater social awareness to the underlying framework of their spiritual values, such as beliefs about the God-given nature of creation or the sanctity of life (Bigoni et al 2013).…”

“…Religious organisations have made a significant contribution to the rise of socially responsible behaviour across the global economy by raising ethical awareness and emphasising a shared sense of responsibility (Raimi et al 2013). A number of previous studies have highlighted the importance of religious values for strengthening socially responsible behaviour (e.g.…”

Islamic Organizational Culture, Islamic Corporate Social Responsibility, and Corporate Performance: Evidence From Sharia Bank in Indonesia

“…Islamic social responsibility (ISR) is the benchmark of social responsibility implementation of sharia banks which contains items compilation in term of CSR standards items determined by Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI). Raimi (2013) argued that Islam and other religions have relationships with CSR. Buddhist values report, if it is used as an economic strategy, it could also overcome the shortage of CSR in alleviating the tribulations associated with the modern economic system (Ková cs, 2014) According to Lee & Kim (2017), the company that applies strategic redistribution to the public (CSR) increase the value of the company.…”