This Female Man of God' is a study of holy women, set against the back drop of late Roman society. In the early church, there were many women who were considered to be holy. They were revered by thess peers and by the male establishment for their profound piery, for their capacities for teaching and conversion, for turning their back on society, or giving up theu spectacular fortunes, all in pursuit of their Christian ideal. Famous in their own time, they are almost unknown now, but, in this ground-breaking book, Gillian Cloke rediscovers them and then age.