FaithShares Trust launched three exchange-traded funds Wednesday focusing on Christian investors who want to invest in portfolios that exclude companies that profit from “objectionable industries,” such as gambling, alcohol, tobacco, pornography, weapons and other activities that are against their faith.

Although there have been Christian mutual funds in the past, this is the first Christian ETF. From 2000 to 2006, assets in other faith-based investments grew seven-fold underscoring the public’s interest in investing according to their beliefs, according to FaithShares Trust.

“We created these funds to meet the needs of investors who want to participate in the potential of the stock market, yet be good stewards of their money,” said Thompson S. Phillips Jr., President of FaithShares. “As an ETF, each of our funds will include 100 stocks of large, well-known companies but specifically exclude those considered to be ’objectionable industries’ by a specific denomination.”

Garrett Stevens, CEO and portfolio manager of FaithShares, said a lot of research went into understanding the various denominations to design the funds. “The Christian Values Fund is the most conservative and we feel it answers the needs of non-denominational church members and other denominations not specifically represented by our other ETFs,” said Stevens.

The FaithShares Funds, which include the FaithShares Catholic Values Fund, the FaithShares Methodist Values Fund and the FaithShares Christian Values Fund, are tailored to each denomination’s teachings and recommendations for investing.

On Dec. 15, FaithShares plans to launch two more funds, the FaithShares Baptist Values Fund and the FaithShares Lutheran Values Fund. Each year, FaithShares Advisors, the company which manages the funds, will give at least 10% of its net income to a ministry associated with the respective denominations.