Hope is in short supply. As 2009 dawns on a bleak and unpredictable economic climate, the feeling of being in uncharted and dangerous waters is felt not only by politicians, bankers, and business leaders, but by everyone.

How did it all go so wrong, and how can we avoid this happening again? Immense pressure is falling on political leaders to come up with solutions fast, to fix the problem so we can all get back to “normal” life, or at least more predictable.

But so far, yanking all the economic levers, dials and switches available to governments has done little to fix the machine. Increasingly, people are realising that our problems are fundamentally ethical, to do with values and the way people think and act.

Greed, irresponsibility, and lack of trust have largely brought about the sustained unravelling of the financial system. “…we don’t just need a financial bailout; we need an ethical bailout,” wrote columnist Thomas Friedman (International Herald Tribune, 17th December). Tony Blair makes a similar point in the same newspaper: “…confidence and the stability that flows from it cannot be restored by technical, regulatory means alone, but by a restoration of values.”

Where do we turn to for such a renewal of values? It has always been the role of religion to provide the ethical and moral basis for human existence, and the three major monotheistic faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – all look up to the Decalogue as a foundation for individual and social ethics.

This ancient code for human flourishing has been a bedrock for the development of societies for 4,000 years. It places compassion, respect for others and human rights at the core of healthy communities, and emphasises that quality of life depends more on good relationships than on material wealth.

This provides a glimmer of hope for people who are finding themselves a lot poorer at the start of 2009 than a year ago. Another source of hope is the fact that the Decalogue was not developed by a mature and prosperous society, but was given instead to a vast and impoverished throng of refugees, with no social, economic, legal or religious institutions at all. They were among the poorest of the poor, having been an immigrant slave population for centuries.

Yet by adopting this ethical and religious framework, their society gradually developed and became the most prosperous and peaceful civilisation in the region within a few generations.

The sculpture entitled “The Invitation (Decalogue)” expresses the monumental role the Decalogue has played in human history. It explores the importance of a common set of values in creating a space in which responsibility, compassion and freedom can thrive, and also illustrates powerfully how the rule of law provides both freedom and a deterrent, both of which are necessary for a flourishing society.

So perhaps a more promising source of hope for 2009 lies not in the hands of politicians and presidents, but in an ancient guide for ethical, spiritual and social development.