This is a timely book examining the role of the Church of England in its engagement in civil society with a particular focus on foreign policy. It seeks to affirm an important continuing role for engagement, recognizing the church’s role in the House of Lords and the authority of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Timely in the sense that the global community is passing through one of those periods in history when a major global realignment is occurring with the rise of China and India, the growing concerns about Russia from the European community, the global economic crisis and the conflicts in the Middle East. The book makes a valuable contribution to an ongoing role for the Church in an increasingly multi-cultural faith British society. The authors identify a range of options for engagement and the complex nature of the issues, in what is described by others as post-modern, a time of transition in values and where the foundations of society are moving and under constant challenge. This is recognized as a global transition involving many cultures.

The authors respond to the ongoing debates in the post-modern era on the role of the Church, faith and individual Christians in influencing and shaping the directions of civil society with a particular emphasis on the United Kingdom. The application of Christian principles, however, are of similar importance elsewhere.

The writers address the challenges faced by Christians in today’s world with particular emphasis on ‘a world disfigured by war, conflict, oppression and injustice’. The book acknowledges the tragedy of war as an ongoing every day human experience in many parts of the world, as characteristic of a broken humanity, examining from their perspectives the Church of England’s engagement and responses.

Chapter two explores the ‘tormenting terrors’ facing Christians, as the author states, in defining the role of ethics in light of competing, sometimes programmatic, options in defining foreign policy, and outlines five Christian responses to these dilemmas. This was a helpful summary and overview advocating ‘approximation and not realization’, with the conclusion of a somewhat limited role for Christian ethics, less than satisfactory in my own view. A more radical and assertive stance would, the writer contends, lead to extremes and ‘terrible fanaticisms’.

Richard Harries in another chapter explores the issue of Just War criteria. He explores the theme ‘that in a tragic world, war may sometimes be a tragic necessity as the least bad of possible courses of action’. Like earlier chapters this recognizes that evil and righteousness do not rest with one side alone. Further, other chapters in the book undertake a sobering assessment of the Just War argument, recognizing its limitations, particularly as it relates to the ongoing military intervention and political instability in Iraq. It would have been helpful if an analysis of the outcomes of Britain’s contribution to the State of Israel and other Middle East countries, particularly in light of present difficulties, were assessed against the church’s teachings.

Throughout the book, various authors assist the reader with a reading of the history of British military intervention across the world, reflecting on the fallout and challenges of each. Each clearly identifies a range of moral dilemmas reminding the reader of both the principles involved and the unintended outcomes. The chapter on arms sales is less than satisfactory, reflecting a passive role while arguing ethical legitimacy.

As an active person seeking to engage Christian theology and ethics in the public space, I was left with a number of questions after reading the book. These included:

• • What is distinctive about a Christian perspective in foreign policy debates?

• • What is the place of religion in addressing violence at home and abroad?

• • What does obedience to the State and to God imply practically?

• • Is our participation in foreign policy to be more than symbolic?

• • How do we address unintended consequences of decisions thought right and proper at a particular time in history?

I enjoyed reading the book and its comprehensive coverage of the issues and commend it to others, but was left with the answer yes, but how?