God of Dirt: Mary Oliver and the Other Book of God [Paperback]

Thomas W. Mann (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 25, 2004

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for American Primitive, Mary Oliver has published twelve books of poetry and five books of essays. Her poems are quoted in everything from Web sites to hymn books. Earthlight, a “Magazine of Spiritual Ecology,” has declared her an “earth saint.” In this engaging study, Mann shows Oliver to have keen eyes and ears for reading the book of nature. Readers will discover that the correspondence between Oliver’s poetry and traditional religious language provides a fresh perspective from which to enjoy her work. Here there is a god, but one who at first seems unrecognizable, at least to Judeo-Christian religious tradition. We know of the “God of heaven,” and even the “God of heaven and earth,” but a god of dirt? Oliver’s reading of the Other Book of God invites us into nature’s “temple” where we may come into the presence of the holy and from which we may leave rejuvenated and blessed. God of Dirt is an important study of a contemporary poet whose work is as likely to be read by a preacher in a pulpit as by an activist at an environmental rally, and will help us experience a new vision of the beauty of our world.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"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." --Mary Oliver

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. (Mary Oliver )

His insight is keen. . . . Mann does not shy from going with Oliver into nature’s apparent cruelty—what we humans, by our morals, consider cruelty, that is—by which so much of the animal world survives. . . . Drawing our attention to the violence and to God forces the reader to contemplate God’s role in our world and our role in God’s. (Beth Woodard Winston-Salem Journal )

About the Author

THOMAS W. MANN has been minister of Parkway United Church of Christ in Winston-Salem, NC for twenty years, and has taught religion and Old Testament at Wake Forest University, Salem College, Converse College, and Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of several books including The Book of Torah: The Narrative Integrity of the Pentateuch (1988) and Deuteronomy (Westminster Bible Companion, 1995).

THOMAS W. MANN has been minister of Parkway United Church of Christ in Winston-Salem, NC for twenty years, and has taught religion and Old Testament at Wake Forest University, Salem College, Converse College, and Princeton Theological Seminary. He is the author of several books including The Book of Torah: The Narrative Integrity of the Pentateuch (1988) and Deuteronomy (Westminster Bible Companion, 1995).

Product Details

• Paperback: 77 pages
• Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers (June 25, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561012610
• ISBN-13: 978-1561012619
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #900,338 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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), a collection of essays on spirituality (To Taste and See), a commentary on Deuteronomy (Westminster Bible Companion series), and most recently a study of the religious dimensions of the poetry of poet Mary Oliver (God of Dirt). All but the first book are suitable for general readers. He has also written numerous scholarly articles on biblical studies, and currently is a member of the Editorial Council of Interpretation, a journal for Bible and theology published by Union Theological Seminary in Richmond, VA. He is currently completing a manuscript on the biblical books of Joshua through 2 Kings (the Former Prophets), as a sequel to his book on the Torah. He also has served as a member of North Carolina Interfaith Power & Light, and often presents a slide lecture on the biblical and theological dimensions of the climate change crisis facing the planet, the most important social justice issue of our time. Tom is an avid hiker, backpacker, and gardener, down-to-earth pleasures that delight in the beauty of nature, the "other book of God."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just a Wonderful Read..., July 21, 2006

By 

Matthew E. Wright (Plymouth, MA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: God of Dirt: Mary Oliver and the Other Book of God (Paperback)

This book enabled me to discover that the correspondence between Oliver's poetry and traditional religious language provides a fresh perspective from which to enjoy her work.

God of Dirt is an important study of a contemporary poet whose work is as likely to be read by a preacher in a pulpit as by an activist at an environmental rally, and will help us experience a new vision of the beauty of our world

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wise synthesis, February 4, 2011

By 

Wilda Dockery - See all my reviews

This review is from: God of Dirt: Mary Oliver and the Other Book of God (Paperback)

Recently I re-read God of Dirt and found it to be just what I need as a reminder and course correction for too much wintry introspection and self-analysis. It recalls me to myself in the best sense, as Mary Oliver's poetry does, by helping me to look beyond myself to my relationship with all life. It recalls me to astonishment and to "my place in the family of things." Tom Mann's writing is a brilliant synthesis and wise articulation of Oliver's poetic insight. Highly recommended to anyone who wants to awaken(over and over again) to the sacredness of the earth.