In a contemporary pluralist context, where Christianity no longer holds a dominant societal position, the church faces an ongoing crisis of identity and mission. The boundaries between church and culture remain fluid, raising questions about how the church should relate to spiritual movements and communities that exist beyond its formal structures. My paper argues that understanding the church's relationship with secular communities and movements with "church-like" qualities is critical to the church's future. The paper offers an approach to this via Paul Tillich's concept of the "latent church". Tillich identified secular communities that embodied spiritual depth, justice, and transcendence—qualities he saw as essential to the church's mission. He believed such non-ecclesial communities can, at times, function as a prophetic correction to the church's own life. My paper argues for a recovery of Tillich's account of the church's relation to such secular prophecy and "latent" expressions of faith. Recovering this view will help the church discern whom to listen to in its ongoing formation, and whom to partner with in a mission that extends beyond its own walls.