Are religion and public lifed really separate spheres of human activity? Should they be? In this book, Robin Lovin criticises contemporary political and theological views that separate religion from public life and advocates a more integrated understanding of modern society. Drawing on the work of two influential twentieth-century theologians, Reinhold Niebuhr and Dietrich Bonhoeffer, he argues that: *'Christian realism' encourages responsible engagement with social and political problems *Political commitment is not confined to the sphere of law and government *The decisions of individuals influence global ethics