This was the book which first garnered international celebrity and notoriety for its author and which fire-started a debate about the supernatural claims of Christianity. Rejecting Christian doctrines and metaphysics in favour of the religious consciousness which characterises human identity, Cupitt ‘takes leave’ of God by abandoning objective theism. Because he remained an ordained priest of the Church of England, the author attracted considerable attention and criticism for his position. Indeed, Keith Ward, now Oxford’s Regius Professor of Divinity, wrote an entire book – Holding Fast to God – which attempted to counter Cupitt’s views. Whatever one thinks of the author’s beliefs, Taking Leave of God contributed to one of the most important theological discussions of its time.
The Revd Don Cupitt was a Life Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge. His books include Taking Leave of God, The Sea of Faith and Solar Ethics were published by SCM Press and translated into many languages.