Faith, freedom and the market: Orthodox Christian and Islamic theological logics of entrepreneurship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to propose a theological reconceptualisation of entrepreneurship by examining how Eastern Orthodox Christianity and Islam articulate distinct metaphysical logics of entrepreneurial agency, value creation and moral responsibility. This study introduces the concept of entrepreneurship-as-witness to highlight how spiritually grounded enterprise can serve as a form of moral and communal testimony, particularly in multi-religious societies marked by historical tension. Design/methodology/approach This conceptual study is grounded in theological anthropology, moral philosophy and critical entrepreneurship theory. Drawing on doctrinal sources from Orthodox and Islamic traditions, this paper offers an ontological redescription of entrepreneurship. This study integrates recent work on affect, decision-making and religious emotion in entrepreneurial settings to develop an interdisciplinary conceptual framework. Findings The analysis reveals that both traditions reject the secular archetype of the autonomous entrepreneur and instead position the entrepreneur as a steward, struggler and moral agent acting under divine accountability. This reframing highlights the importance of humility, discernment and communal ethics. This paper also identifies theological convergences that support interfaith entrepreneurial cooperation and peacebuilding. Originality/value This study contributes to entrepreneurship scholarship by: advancing a theological theory of entrepreneurial agency beyond Protestant ethics; introducing entrepreneurship-as-witness as a conceptual category that integrates ontological humility with moral action; and proposing a framework for interfaith economic cooperation rooted in shared theological logics. This study also extends recent work on entrepreneurial emotions by linking pride, discernment and affective risk to theological self-understanding.