Thomas W. Mann

Thomas W. Mann grew up in Durham, NC, graduated from UNC Chapel in 1966, Yale Divinity School in 1970, and Yale Graduate School in 1975 (Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible). He taught at Princeton Theological Seminary, then Converse College (Spartanburg, SC), then became the minister of Parkway United Church of Christ in Winston-Salem, NC in 1984, retiring from that position in 2007. He has also taught as an adjunct professor at Salem College, Wake Forest University, and Wake Forest Divinity School. He has written books on technical biblical and ancient Near Eastern studies (Divine Presence and Guidance), an introduction to the Pentateuch (The Book of the Torah, 2nd ed.), The Book of the Former Prophets (a study of Joshua through 2 Kings), a collection of essays on spirituality (To Taste and See), a commentary on Deuteronomy (Westminster Bible Companion series), and a study of the religious dimensions of the poetry of poet Mary Oliver (God of Dirt, see below). All but the first book are suitable for general readers. He has also written numerous scholarly articles on biblical studies. In evaluating God of Dirt, Mary Oliver has written "The book pleases me immensely. I feel very honored by this book, and am made happy by it, as Thomas Mann has expressed so well what I have been about these last decades" (2004).