"Throughout history, women have been at the forefront of church activity. In Great Women of Faith, Dr. Nancy Hardesty details the strength and influence of Christian women since the early Christian era. She documents the lives and activities of women from the ancient, medieval, Reformation, and early American churches whose devotion and virtue caused them to assume leadership roles in the church. Women such as Marcella and Paula (fourth century), Catherine of Siena (fourteenth century), Mary Fisk (seventeenth century), Phoebe Palmer, Antoinette Brown Blackwell, Catherine Booth (nineteenth century, and many others, found God's grace sufficient and God's wisdom ample to meet any situation. These women were mystics, nuns, community leaders, social workers, and missionaries dedicated to education, evangelism, and social justice."