Faith/Secular Partnerships in a Post COVID-19 Policy Landscape: A Critical Case Study of Deepening Postsecularity in the Temple Tradition

The Blackburn Conference sought to understand the efficacy and relevance of Archbishop William Temple’s political theology and social thought for nation building in the context of the early 2020s in recognition of the eightieth anniversary of his seminal book Christianity and Social Order. Temple’s work, through the effective deployment of middle axioms, was instrumental in defining the contours of what would become the post-war universal and comprehensive “welfare state” (his term) in Britain. It also made the moral, social, and economic case for such a state on key doctrines within Christianity and Western philosophy. A key aim of the Blackburn conference was to ascertain the extent to which the legacy of the Temple tradition has anything useful or strategic to say in the current context of the many public spheres in which we now live, in particular those spheres characterized by deepening interfaith relationships between Christian, Muslim, and Jewish traditions as well as other faith communities. The case study that I would like to explore for this critical task involves national research analyzing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ways partnerships evolved between faith communities and local authorities, as the latter scrambled to meet the unprecedented demands made upon them and other public service providers—a situation that was likened at the time to being on a war footing. 1 This case study therefore looks at faith/secular attempts to rebuild the public square following both the pandemic and now the cost-of-living crisis. The faith/secular nature of the case study invites us to consider the extent to which the postsecular—or indeed ideas of post-secularity—have anything to offer as a critical lens by which to examine this experience. In particular I want to reflect on the idea of “deepening postsecularity.” I will then move on to identify themes or tropes with the Temple tradition that might illuminate further this case study in “deepening postsecularity” and which help us to understand the measure of what is required to build lasting and sustainable partnerships across difference for the common cause of rebuilding public life in the context of ongoing trauma and struggle.