Biblical Approach to Development: A Theological Reflection from the Perspective of Burkan Pentadic Criticism

The subject of development has been approached from different academic disciplines mainly from sociological, economic, political and anthropological perspectives. Not much has been written about the subject of development within theological scholarship. The reason is that the church and for that matter, traditional theological scholarship has focused on personal piety and discipleship instead of social responsibility and development. Subsequently many have come to think that the Bible has less to say about development. The main aim of this article is to offer a biblically informed systematic approach to the subject of development. It argues that the Bible provides a useful guide on what it means to develop. Using the method of Burkan Pentadic Criticism to analyse the biblical teaching on the essentials of development, this paper maintains that the Bible and for that matter, the biblical teaching on development, should shape the human understanding, worldview and attitudes about development. Keywords: Development, Worldview, Bible, stewardship, Pentadic Criticism, shalom.