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Good morning, Perhaps one of the defining themes of popular culture in 2025 has been the power of female friendships. This year saw part two of the cinema blockbuster Wicked, For Good – a prequel to the Wizard of Oz, which tells the story of the complicated yet profound friendship between Glinda and Elphaba. And of course Saturday’s final of Strictly Come Dancing saw the last live show of Tess Daly and Claudia Winklemann. In the seventies, presenting duos often comprised a leading man with women playing supporting roles of glamorous assistants. Tess and Claudia changed all that – and their partnership has become an iconic symbol of female friendship in British culture. What I love about their partnership was the decision they made that when one of them would leave, the other would go, too. “We were always going to leave together,” they said. Their commitment to each other reminded me of another iconic friendship in the Bible: that of Naomi and Ruth. Naomi and Ruth’s friendship is a bond of loyal love and faithfulness, shown when Ruth chooses to stay with Naomi at great personal cost. I can’t help but feel goosebumps when I hear the famous words from their story: “Where you go, I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.” The friendships of male biblical heroes like King David and Jonathan and among the band of male disciples that followed Jesus might be better known, but I find it’s the women’s stories that often draw me in, as I think of the female friendships that have sustained me throughout my life. The women – who despite their own challenges – show up at the times of greatest need; that laugh and cry and dance with me. At church at this time of year, you might hear the words of the Magnificat – Mary’s powerful song that speaks of a world being turned right way up. These words are said in the presence of another woman – her cousin Elizabeth, who is pregnant with John the Baptist. Mary goes to stay with Elizabeth after finding out she herself is pregnant. The Magnificat is a declaration for all humanity, but it’s also a song whose very existence takes place within a tender moment of female solidarity; Mary’s words echoing those of other strong women of Israel who have come before her. As a conference of feminist theologians declared in Singapore in 1994: “This song… announces a complete change in the present, patriarchal order. This means moral, social, political, economic and cultural reversals…” In Mary’s words there is great encouragement for women in the support and solidarity that they give to one another. In the busyness of this festive season, I’ll raise a glass to solidarity and friendship – among women, among men, among all of us.