The challenging pace set by Professor Linda Woodhead on debating and researching religion is expected to step up a gear as she has accepted an invitation to become president of Modern Church. Formerly the Modern Church People’s Union and part of the Church of England, it was founded at the end of the nineteenth century and attracted argumentative liberals often dismissed as heretical or fringe. It now attracts subscribers from many denominations, including a number of Catholics. Woodhead, professor of the sociology of religion at Lancaster University, has led the way conducting research on trends in the mainstream Christian Churches and more recently has helped organise the Westminster Faith Debates on religion in public life. In the autumn she will organise a new series of debates