For the rest of our early 2019 season we have three sessions arranged. One will have already taken place by the time this magazine is available. That is, we will be talking about Paula Gooder’s book ‘Phoebe’ just before Easter. This is a novel about one of the many women who played a major role in the early Church, acting as an assistant to and messenger from Paul. The novel seeks to recreate some of her story but almost uniquely the book has a second part which gives a lot of background information about the early Church and presents it in a very accessible way. Paula Gooder, a lay person and a distinguished academic, has been appointed recently to an important post at St Paul’s Cathedral in London.

Our theme during this period is women and their influence, past, present and future. We started off by reading Mary Beard’s short book Women and Power. Many of you will know of Mary Beard from her television work presenting series on the classical world of Greece and Rome, of which she is a leading scholar. Her interest in this book is in trying to describe from her standpoint the many examples in classical history when women had something important to say or do and were denied that opportunity inevitably by men. Her’s is not a feminist rant (although she holds strong opinions) but rather a concern for the future of all humankind and a belief that we need to find ways in which people of all gifts can express their views and influence what happens. It is a beautiful read and merits the time of anyone who wants to think about this a little more.

Of course, Phoebe was one person who could have been referred to in Mary Beard’s book but she is only one of the many female followers of Jesus whose role as friends of Jesus himself and later in the early Church seem to have been downplayed by those who wrote the gospels and the letters in the new testament. It is a fair question, to ask why that might have been and scholars are increasingly asking and seeking to answer that question.

We will continue with our reading in this vein. Next up, after Easter, is Michelle Obama’s book ‘Becoming’, in which she tells the story of her life so far, including her years alongside her husband, Barack, in the White House. Our meeting will be held at 7.30 (after Messy Church) on Tuesday 14 May. Then, at the same time and also after Messy Church, on 2 July we will be talking about a book written much closer to home. Many will know Margaret Lambert, who has lived in north Preston for, I think, all her life, and we are going to read a book which she has recently written and had published called ‘The Rufford Rose’. Margaret is going to join us at the meeting and no doubt we will hear much about her reasons for writing the story and costs and joys she experienced in doing so. So our theme of looking at women who have been able to express their voices will continue as we discuss these two very different books

At that July meeting we will determine our programme for the rest of the year so if you have ideas please come along and express them..

Everyone is welcome to our meetings which we think are friendly and stimulating. Not everyone who comes has read the books we are discussing but they usually can find something to contribute from their experience of life. All that we ask is that everyone is tolerant of our consumption of biscuits and cake, and they are welcome to join us in that pursuit if they wish.