a book on theology, selling over one million copies. Cox developed the thesis that the church is primarily a people of faith and action, rather than an institution. He argued that "God is just as present in the secular as the religious realms of life". Thus, the original title was God and the Secular City, which "he still believes... would have more accurately described the book's theme."

Far from being a protective religious community, the church should be in the forefront of change in society, celebrating