Dr Geoffrey Harris, of Lincoln, is a Methodist minister and also currently the director of studies at the East Midlands Ministry Training Course, based within the University of Nottingham, talks about his new book, Paul...

"It provides an overview of the life and thought of the apostle Paul, but unlike many other works it does not separate out Paul the theologian from Paul the missioner and man of action.

"I have tried to show how the theology emerged from Paul's life, mission and experiences founding and building church communities.

"There is quite a lot of historical background in the book, which serves to illustrate and illuminate the life and faith of Paul and the context of the churches he worked with.

"For six years I was minister of two churches in Lincoln – Moorland Park Methodist on Skellingthorpe Road and Skellingthorpe Village Methodist Church. Before entering ministry I was a French teacher. In ministry, I have served in Swanwick, Derbyshire, Yaounde, Cameroon (West Africa) – where I was New Testament lecturer at the Faculty of Protestant Theology.

"In this book, a number of misconceptions and misunderstandings about Paul are dispelled – for instance his attitude to women. It becomes quite clear from the real-life case studies that Paul worked closely with women and men at every level of the ministry. It also emerges that Paul was a very sensitive and loving pastor, even though he became tense and agitated when the life and faith of his churches was under threat.

"The study of the life and writings of the apostle Paul forms a core component of every course on the New Testament and Early Church history. This book is also aimed at the intelligent and curious lay reader and does not use theological jargon or become involved in abstruse arguments."

Publishers: SCM Press, £19.99