Religion and politics ought not mix, we are often told. But they have always done so, and sometimes with great success, notably in the development of welfare states in the early 20th century, when Christian churches and theologians were constructively, if sometimes critically, in supportive of such initiatives. Today, however, economic and demographic pressures have conspired to place the state under immense pressure, with calls to 'rethink' the welfare state becoming more common. Rethinking, however, demands that we ask some big questions: What is welfare for? What kind of good are we trying to achieve? What kind of being is it whose good we are trying to serve? In this study, Nick Spencer steers the welfare debate away from technocratic concerns. Drawing on the work of four major, twentieth-century theologians, he offers a fresh, concrete, and realistic vision for the vision of welfare at a time when it is badly needed.

‘This work is vital and would be vital even if the pressures on welfare states were not so great… we will have the best chance of making good changes if we have thought carefully about what the wider purposes and foundations of our collective welfare provision really are. Nick Spencer's excellent book can be a great help in setting out a coherent Christian theological basis for just that work.'

Sir Andrew Dilnot - from the Foreword

‘Does Christian thought have anything distinctive to say to debates about the nature of welfare provision in our society? In this timely and challenging book, Nick Spencer shows – through a close and sympathetically critical reading of a variety of modern Christian writers – that theology does indeed have a contribution to make in reinforcing the need for welfare to contribute to the building of personal dignity, civic liberty and mutuality. A fine and significant study.'

Rowan Williams - Former Archbishop of Canterbury

‘This tremendous book exhibits much more real social and political intelligence than that shown by many politicians today. Spencer both narrates and reinvigorates a Christian personalist approach to welfare that refuses either the impersonalism of state bureaucracy or the ethical indifference of the pure free market.

John Milbank - University of Nottingham

‘What does it mean to be human? The answer to this question constitutes the key to this volume which mines a wide range of theological sources…to enrich our understanding of both welfare and the welfare state. Warmly recommended.'

Grace Davie - University of Exeter

‘Nick Spencer's illuminating and timely study of welfare cuts to the heart of a fundamental problem: our dysfunctional political economy rests on a flawed understanding of human nature. He rightly looks to Christian thought for the antidote. This absorbing book offers not just a critique, but a compelling vision for reform, identifying the principles necessary to uphold what it means to be human.'

Jenny Sinclair - Founder and Director, Together for the Common Good

‘A wonderfully satisfying deep dive into the theological and philosophical roots of welfare thinking from four key thinkers. Nick Spencer reminds us that the policy contours of a new welfare state are derived from the deepest contours of the human heart and our search for fulfilment. Erudite yet accessible, and brimming with timely insight and humanity.'

Christopher Baker - University of London

‘Timely and accessible, this book is a vital resource for anyone interested in public policy. Nick Spencer provides us with a brilliant exploration of the relationship between Christian theology and the welfare state. At a time when politicians appear unable to rethink and reform what the state provides, Spencer returns to first principles – in particular the work of  William Temple, Jacques Maritain, John Paul II and Rowan Williams – and offers a rigorous, theologically grounded vision of  the purpose of social security, one rooted in questions of citizenship, justice and human character.'

Jon Cruddas - Former Labour MP for Dagenham and Rainham

‘At a time when social democracies are struggling to foster constructive welfare debates, Spencer provides a compelling examination of Christian contributions to questions of welfare, the common good, and the nature of the modern state. This book demonstrates brilliantly why Christianity remains deeply relevant to tackling our most complex social policy debates.'

Anna Rowlands - Durham University

‘Nick Spencer brings rigour and clarity to a subject on which contemporary churches have often been vocal but rarely profound. The crisis in social welfare seems hopeless because it lacks a serious understanding of the human person of the kind offered here. This book should be read in government, in the academy and in our churches.'

Malcolm Brown - former Director of Faith and Public Life for the Church of England

‘British churches have generated numerous well-intentioned but piecemeal and reactive recommendations on welfare reform. But rigorous and coherent theological foundations for such a project remain thin on the ground. Spencer's penetrating yet accessible interrogation of how four leading modern theologians have reflected on the question is a landmark contribution to remedying that deficit.'

Jonathan Chaplin - Fellow of Wesley House, Cambridge

‘The welfare state is in crisis in many European countries and will undoubtedly lead to calls for reform. In this scholarly and fascinating book, based on voluminous research, Nick Spencer examines the contribution which theology and anthropology could make. Whether or not you agree with his personal theological vision, the book is essential reading for anyone who wishes to consider the future of welfare provision, state or otherwise.'

‘Welfare and religion are among the most lively and controversial issues in modern democracies, and Spencer, one of our leading public intellectuals, makes a major contribution to both in this well-informed, deep, yet accessible Christian engagement with them. He not only draws on the best academic and Christian thinking about welfare in the past century, but also offers a constructive, convincing orientation for the future, one that is well suited to a multi-religious and multi-secular society. This is Christian wisdom in the service of the common good, and deserves a formative role in public debates about welfare.'

David F. Ford - Regius Professor of Divinity Emeritus, University of Cambridge