This work investigates the historical and contemporary relationship between Christian moral ideology and the shifting structures of global political order. E. R. Norman, a noted historian of the Church, examines how religious institutions have historically influenced, and been influenced by, secular political movements. The text argues that the politicization of Christian ethics often leads to the subordination of theological principles to the prevailing ideologies of the modern state.

Scholars and critics frequently note the academic density of the prose and the author's rigorous, often provocative, historical analysis. Experts highlight this as a foundational text for understanding the secularization of Christian moral discourse in the twentieth century.