Catholic Founders #39 The Catholic Way to Invest: How Catholic Founders Integrate Faith, Virtue, and Finance | Daniel Catone (Arimathea)
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Hey everyone — Silas here with another Catholic Founders podcast episode.
Today, we are talking about money with the host of the Theology of Money podcast, Daniel Catone.
News / Updates:
* This past Tuesday evening, we hosted a dinner with Catholic Founders in Chicago — thank you to all who attended! If you’d like to attend the one we’re hosting in NYC, reach out (penciling in a date soon).
* This coming Tuesday, we have a Catholic Founders Guild call on the topic of considering our legacy.
* Fides is offering Catholic Founders Readers/Listeners 15% discount on all upcoming events through the end of the year — just use code: CATHOLICGUILD2025 at checkout. (He has some incredible speakers lined up).
* There is a Catholic entrepreneur gathering in San Francisco on November 20th (tentatively) — Stay tuned for more details.
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In Today’s Issue:
* Intro to the Guest and Topic
* Core Takeaway
* Episode References
* Select Quotes
* Key Moments
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Today’s Topic & Guest:
* Daniel Catone | Arimathea Investing
* Daniel Catone, founder of Arimathea, is redefining what it means to grow wealth with purpose. Rooted in Catholic Social Teaching, he believes finance can—and should—serve the common good. He experienced leading Golden State family of companies’ $4.5B investment network, and throughout the years has built a career proving that faith and finance aren’t opposites. With a master’s in Catholic Theology and years of pro-bono service to the Church, he’s on a mission to show that impact investing is true stewardship a way to multiply God’s gifts while transforming the world.
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Core Lesson:
The world tells us, cover your own financial needs first, then others, and then, if there is any leftover, you can give to The Church. A proper ordering is the exact opposite. God first. Others. And then ourselves.
This is not something easy for us to entertain with any amount of seriousness. Mainly because we imagine if others around us did that, we’d call them crazy.
However, if you think it’s crazy you need to ask yourself why Jesus told his Apostles not to worry about their own provisions. In Luke 12:29-31 He said:
“As for you, do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not worry any more. All the nations of the world seek for these things, and your father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these other things will be given you besides.”
(The entire passage from verse 13 through 34 is incredible. I’d encourage you to read it today)
Acting on this teaching is not easy. But it is possible when we ask God for the grace to desire it. So, in human terms. Maybe it is crazy. But a lot of people probably considered the Apostles to be crazy. We know they were not.
This tells us is that—through a human lens, some things may look crazy. But through the lens of the faith, with grace, they are the only things that do make sense. I think this is one of them.
If you hear this and don’t immediately think—wow I want to do that. Don’t worry—you’re like the rest of us. Human. But if you spend some time pondering this and asking God to help you understand this. You might get to the point of wanting to pursue it.
Not because you want it, but because you know it’s the right thing. Once you reach that point, it’s time to ask God for the grace to desire this teaching—the properly ordered perspective on spending our money.
God bless and Happy Building!
~Silas Mähner
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Key Episode References:
* The Theology of Money Podcast
* Rerum Novarum in 2025: Applying it to Your Business | Travis Callaway
* The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
Select Quotes:
* “This ordering of goods or ordering of goals is the exact opposite of what our Lord teaches. Our Lord teaches us that we are to put God first, others second, and ourselves last because He puts us first. We don’t have to worry about ourselves.” — Daniel
* “Money is a tool in service to the common good, and so I would caution any entrepreneur to not begin the path of entrepreneurship with the intention of accumulating wealth. That’s a byproduct of other actions.” — Daniel
* “What the Lord is calling us to do is integrate every aspect of our life under His authority so that whether we’re at work or at home or at church, we are engaged with the Holy Spirit, we are engaged with Christ.” — Daniel
* “We must approach the rain with an open hand and not try to grasp... it helps us reframe that ambition so that rather than it being self-serving, it becomes other-serving.” — Daniel
* “The truth is we are touching people’s souls first and then offering them a product... wealth is inferior to the eternality of a soul.” — Daniel
* “I kind of adopted him as the true CEO of my company... every once in a while, I got a knock on his door and say, St. Joseph, this is a problem I can’t fix, I need to take care of it. And he does...”— Daniel
* “We leave everyone better off for having met us... treat everyone... with infinite human dignity.” — Daniel
* “Man cannot be smaller than his money... if your character and capability is not of a significant heft, the money will fall through your fingers.” — Daniel
Key Moments: (outline)
* 01:06 Introduction
* Introduction of Daniel Catone, CEO and Co-Founder of Arimathea, a financial asset manager that screens investments for alignment with Catholic teachings.
* 03:41 The Catholic Approach To Money
* Reorder goals: God first, others second, and self last.
* 06:13 The Foundational Sources of Catholic Financial Teaching
* including Sacred Scripture, Church Fathers (St. John Chrysostom), Encyclicals (Rerum Novarum), and modern documents.
* 10:18 Cautioning entrepreneurs against accumulating wealth as the primary goal.
* The business journey should start with prayer and focus on serving the common good.
* 12:46 A Deep Dive Into Ambition
* Daniel suggests that the proper approach towards ambition.
* 15:22 The Necessity of Living a Fully Unified Life
* and recognizing that work is a vocation that impacts people’s souls, which is superior to the acquisition of wealth.[
* 17:05 Staying Away From The Modern Tendency to Artificially Segregate Life
* The importance of recapturing the rhythm of a fully integrated life.
* 18:49 Practical Tips for Integration of One’s Life
* 25:47 Discerning One’s Unique Mission
* Talent is “meaningless without virtue,” with prudence being a core entrepreneurial virtue
* 31:00 Personal Testimony
* Daniel shares a story of leaving a successful a secular company because the work was “vacuous” and unfulfilling, leading to a new, liberating mission
* 53:16 Saint Joseph of Arimathea
* 1:00:00 Conclusion
* Rapid Fire
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