• Matthew 25 Book Group – Our Matthew 25 Book Group will meet on Mondays, March 16 and April 20 at 7:00 p.m. for our next read, How We Learn to Be Brave by Mariann Edgar Budde. Bishop Budde has served as the Bishop of Washington, DC since 2011 with the Episcopal Church. This book is a spiritual guide that explores how to find courage in life’s critical junctures, blending personal stories, scripture, and history to help readers ponder how they can respond with faith and clarity in difficult times. Contact Bookmarks or order your copy or click on the “book clubs” section of their webpage and look for Highland’s Matthew 25 Book Group. You will receive 20% off when ordering there. Reach out to Debbie Layman with questions or to sign up.

• Poverty Book Group: The focus of our next Poverty Book Group will be our neighbors who are working and unhoused. Our book will be There Is No Place for Us by Brian Gladstone who shares the stories of five families in Atlanta. We will gather on Mondays, March 23 and April 27 at 7:00 p.m. You will receive 20% off when ordering through Bookmarks if you tell them you are with a Highland book club when you order. Contact Debbie Layman if you have interest in joining the discussions.

• Listening to Black Voices Book Group: Join us via Zoom at 7:00 p.m. March 17 as we continue reading and reflecting on the experience of our African American neighbors and consider what our faithful responses might entail. In March we will discuss the first four chapters of Heather McGhee’s The Sum of Us. If you are interested, please contact Randy Harris.

• Lenten Congregational Book Discussion – Join us February 22 through March 29 (Sunday mornings at 9:30 a.m. in-person or Wednesdays at noon in person or via Zoom) as we read and discuss Forgiveness: A Lenten Study by Marjorie Thompson. Forgiving others and humbly asking for forgiveness are central disciplines for all Christian believers. Lent, a time to reflect on our Christian journey, is an appropriate time to deepen our understanding and practice of forgiveness. Together we will take a close look at our understanding of forgiveness in this encouraging study.

• LGBTQ Book Group, Spring Study: For our next LGBTQ book study, we have chosen Queer Communion: Religion in Appalachia, by Davis Shoulders. Our group will gather on March 22 and April 19 at 4:00 p.m. in the Ardmore Room to discuss this beautifully written collection of twelve essays, poems, and stories that follows and fractures the expectations surrounding LGBTQIA+ Appalachians and their religious beliefs. Gathered by Davis Shoulders, the pieces delve into themes of chosen family, loss, congregation, and alternative expressions of faith. Set against the backdrop of Christian cultural mores and a region considered to be deeply pious, these writings offer diverse perspectives on religion, queerness, and growth. Queer Communion explores everything from the joy and excitement of worship to the complexities of navigating one’s queerness and spiritual convictions in oppressive environments. Copies are available through Bookmarks. You will receive 20% off when you tell them at the time of your order you are with the Bookmarks’ Book Club program. Contact Debbie Layman with questions or to sign up.

• Highland Pageturners Women’s Book Group: This group meets the 3rd Wednesday every month at 7 p.m. at rotating homes and are having a fabulous time together along with lively discussions. The book for March is The Names, by Florence Knapp. The book for April is Go as a River, by Shelley Read. Contact Ednamae Fisher for more information or to sign up!

• Thursday Morning Women’s Study: This group meets every Thursday, 10:00–11:30 a.m., Ardmore Room, and will be learning from Lynn Japinga’s book: From Daughters to Disciples: Women’s Stories from the New Testament, March 5-April 30. In this second of two volumes, Lynn Japinga acquaints readers with the women of the New Testament. From faithful forerunners like Anna and Elizabeth to female disciples like the sisters Mary, Martha, and Mary Magdalene to first-generation followers like Lydia and Dorcas, readers will encounter a wealth of foremothers in the faith in all their messy, yet redeemable, humanity. This Bible study introduces and retells every female character who contributes to one or more New Testament stories, diving deeply into what each woman’s story means for us today. Please contact Heather Ferguson for more information.