Future of Brexit Britain

The idea of British identity has been thrown into question by the debates around the EU Referendum, but now that Brexit is here, it’s time to think positively and constructively about Britain’s future.How might Britain as a multinational state understand its own defining moral and political commitments in relation to its European neighbours? And if, as many suggest, a resurgence of English nationhood has been the driving force behind Brexit, how might the Church of England, as the 'national Church', respond to this and the many other missional challenges it faces?Those of us still wondering what to make of Brexit - including thoughtful Christians, politicians, journalists, think-tanks and religious leaders - will find much to stimulate thought and discussion here. The contributors have a wealth of specialist knowledge of Brexit and the EU; they draw on this and the legacies of Anglican - and more broadly Christian - social and political theology to offer their rich and nuanced responses to a range of crucial questions.

This stimulating collection of essays seeks to give voice to the genuine plurality of Anglican views on the politics of Brexit. It offers an honest resource for thinking about the path to Brexit, and the life of the nation beyond it. It does not reconcile difference, but it does name it as part of the struggle of the present, and it seeks to challenge Christians of all views to imagine a future with hope., The English Church played a constitutive role in the identity of the English polity. From the parish to the Lords it bore witness to the life of the nation. This is the first serious book I have read that engages with whether the Church will continue to play a covenantal role in our national life., ‘A remarkable achievement . . . there are . . . hopeful signs of forward thinking, imagination, and intellectual fruitfulness to be found alongside the passionate conviction’, Jonathan Chaplin and Andrew Bradstock have done an excellent job in bringing together a wide range of church leaders, politicians, economists and theologians to present a diversity of perspectives on post Brexit Britain and the place of the Church of England within it - in a process which William Temple would recognise.

Dr Jonathan Chaplin is a Member of the Divinity Faculty, University of Cambridge, Theos Research Associate and co-editor with Gary Wilton of God and the EU (Routledge, 2016).Professor Emeritus Andrew Bradstock has been researching, teaching and writing about the relationship between faith, politics and social engagement for more than 30 years. From 2009-13 he was inaugural Howard Paterson Professor of Theology and Public Issues at the University of Otago where he established and directed New Zealand's first Centre for Theology and Public Issues. He is the author of David Sheppard: Batting for the Poor: The authorized biography of the celebrated cricketer and bishop (SPCK, 2019).