Rachel Mann

Littlemore College is in a picturesque village just outside Oxford. Its calm surroundings have seen generations of aspirant priests pray and train. As far the outside world is concerned, human passions are restrained by devotion to a higher calling. But this is the 1990s and women are training for priesthood for the very first time and passions are running high and at Littlemore College's enclosed and febrile heart a small group of brilliant young ordinands, the favoured students of the charismatic and controversial Medievalist, Professor Albertus Loewe are asking themselves some very dangerous questions indeed. When Catherine Bolton arrives with her freshly-minted doctorate on Chaucer and the Church, Dr Loewe and his secretive group of students represents an irresistible challenge to her and her new friend Evie Kirkland. But just as Evie is not quite the friend she seems to be, so too the medieval passions of Dr Loewe's group are more far reaching and intense than she could ever have imagined.

The Gospel of Eve

'Waiting can be beautiful and, at least sometimes, it takes us to the heart of the Holy.'

As much at home with Strictly Come Dancing as the mystical writings of Julian of Norwich, Rachel Mann writes with disarming verve of something we all experience - waiting.

It may seem unlikely when you're stuck on a train, or nervously anticipating hospital treatment, or simply fearful of an uncertain future, that there is treasure to be found in the waiting. Yet the Psalmist says, 'I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry.'

These luminous meditations tell stories of God waiting with us when we're in fear or distress; of coming - bidden or unbidden - to relieve our loneliness; of disconcerting us, desiring us and surprising us with joy... Most of all they remind us that Jesus Christ comes into the world as one long waited for; as the servant who waits on others; as the one on whom we are, adoringly, called to wait.

Covering 4 weeks, each meditation ends with a prayer and questions for reflection, which may be used by individuals or groups.

The Joy of Waiting in a Time of Fear

Do Not Be Afraid

Framed by her most famous poems ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’ and ‘Love Came Down at Christmas’, this daily devotional explores Advent and Christmas through the poetry of Christina Rossetti. For each day there is a poem with a reflection that draws on Rossetti’s writings, encompassing a rich variety of themes:

Advent and Christmas with Christina Rossetti

In the Bleak Midwinter

Winner of 2016 National Jewish Book Award for Young Adult Literature 'Jewish summer camp is the perfect setting for a multi-generational novel: a daughter connects with her late mother through names etched in the bleachers, murals in the dining hall, and a mysterious stranger. Mann's compelling story and artful writing make this an excellent read for teens and adults.' Sarah Bunin Benor, winner, Sami Rohr Choice Award for Jewish Literature, author of Becoming Frum: How Newcomers Learn the Language and Culture of Orthodox Judaism 'Whether on the streets of New York or deep in the summer camp woods, Mann ensures the reader is as alive to every sight and sound as her central characters. Not only is the writing exquisite, but it had me in floods of tears by the end. I loved this book and so will you!' Justine Solomons, Byte the Book 'Mann weaves a poignant tale of loss and discovery that carefully builds to a hopeful, satisfying ending.' Wiley Blevins, author One daughter. One mother. One summer camp. Twenty years apart. If only Reena could stay in the city, instead of spending the last summer before high school at her cousin's Jewish sleepaway camp. From morning prayer to Color War to the social pecking order, she is lost from the start, and her cousin Lila is no ally. While working on her survival skills, Reena begins to find clues of the mother she never knew. Twenty years earlier, Naomi stands on a dock in the middle of the lake. Just finished with her first year of college, camp feels too small to contain her giant dreams. Her sister Mara is all about finding a man, but Naomi believes something more awaits. A mysterious, barefoot stranger appears on a hill, offering blessings and songs. Can he guide Naomi to her future? Can he help Reena untangle her past?

On Blackberry Hill

A true story about searching for one's authentic self in the company of the Living God. Rachel Mann has died many 'deaths' in the process, not the least of which was a change of sex, as well as coming to terms with chronic illness and disability. This passionate and nuanced book brings together poetry, feminist theology, and philosophy, and explores them through one person's hunger for wholeness, self-knowledge and God.

Dazzling Darkness

Rachel Mann explains how in our encounters with the spectres of God, one can have peace with limitation, precariousness, and lack of certainty and still find in divine fragility the hope of the world. Drawing on her experience, Mann explores how God invites us to live in a three-dimensional mystery that subverts the depressing realities of life.

Spectres of God

Fierce Imaginings is one of the most searching and original books written about the impact of the First World War on the faith and the myths of the UK. Recent events have reinforced the sense that we run back to our mythology pretty readily when we feel anxious and at sea, desperately dusting off the stereotypes and the legends that seem to offer reassurance. The importance of this exceptional book is that it helps us see how the rituals of memory can work in a way that is anything but reactionary or repressive. They take us 'in search of the human', to use an evocative phrase from these pages: a search with some contemporary urgency.

The Great War, Ritual, Memory & God

Fierce Imaginings

Powerful and moving readings, stories and poems for Easter. Rachel Mann writes with the voices of the characters involved in the biblical accounts of passion and resurrection, unafraid to explore the darkest aspects evoked by these events. A book to accompany you through the events of Easter and beyond. Rachel Mann is an Anglican priest and poet-in-residence at Manchester Cathedral.

Risen Dust

Still Standing continues the tradition of DLT's popular movie-based Lent course series for small groups. Rachel Mann, author of the bestselling course From Now On (The Greatest Showman) has written this stunning new course based on the Oscar - and BAFTA - nominated Elton John biopic Rocketman. In five weekly sessions, she uses clips from the film, Bible passages and discussion-starters to help us relate the movie to the scriptures and the Gospel. Themes include: Becoming and calling. Relationships and how they shape our identities. The meaning of success and failure. Struggle, upset and forgiveness. Death and resurrection.

A Lent Course Based on the Elton John Movie Rocketman

Still Standing

Dear Daughter of a Narcissistic Mother

Priest, poet, and broadcaster Rachel Mann believes the world is charged with a divine spark. She explains how in our encounters with what she terms "the spectres of God," one can become at peace with limitation, precariousness, lack of certainty, and one's fractures--and at the same time find in divine fragility the hope of the world. Drawing on her own experiences, in three short chapters (on the body, on love, and on time) Mann explores how God invites us, repeatedly, to live in a rich, three-dimensional mystery that subverts the depressing flat-earth of modern life. In the My Theology series, the world's leading Christian thinkers explain some of the principal tenets of their theological beliefs in concise, pocket-sized books.

'About the months leading up to Evie's death, indeed, about the aftermath, I made a solemn vow to keep silent, and I like to think I take promises seriously. Despite what happened to Evie, I still think of those months I spent in the company of her and Richard, Ivo, Charlie and Piers as fondly as I remember anything. That we swore an oath to silence is not, necessarily, a sign of guilt. You should remember that we are the kind of people who take oaths seriously and we had more things binding us together than mere promises.'~Littlemore College is in a picturesque village just outside Oxford. Its calm surroundings have seen generations of aspirant priests pray and train. As far as the outside world is concerned, human passions are restrained by devotion to a higher calling. But this is the 1990s and women are training for the priesthood for the very first time. Passions are running high and at Littlemore College's enclosed and febrile heart, a small group of brilliant young ordinands, the favoured students of the charismatic and controversial Medievalist, Professor Albertus Loewe, are asking themselves some very dangerous questions.When Catherine Bolton arrives with her freshly-minted doctorate on Chaucer and the Church, Dr Loewe and his secretive group of students represent an irresistible challenge to her and her new friend Evie Kirkland. But just as Evie is not quite the friend she seems to be, so too the medieval passions of Dr Loewe's group are more far reaching and intense than she could ever have imagined.

Dazzling Darkness is a true story about searching for one's authentic self in the company of the Living God. Rachel Mann has died many 'deaths' in the process, not the least of which was a change of sex, as well as coming to terms with chronic illness and disability.Through these experiences she has discovered that darkness is as much a positive place as a negative one, inhabited by the Living God - the Dark God, the Hidden God. This is the God that many of us, because we try to make our lives safe and comfortable, are too afraid to meet. This is the God who is most alive in those things we commonly associate with the Dark - failure, loss and brokenness.The Christian church has legitimated certain ways of talking about God - male, fatherly, monarchical and so on. Many believe these descriptors tell the exhaustive truth about God. In accepting the complexity of her sexuality and identity, Rachel Mann has been able to explore with a greater freedom what God might look like to an 'unconventional creature' like her.This second edition of Rachel's passionate, celebrated and nuanced book has been thoroughly revised and extended, with new chapters which re-examine what it means to live with ill-health and being trans nearly a decade on from the original publication of Dazzling Darkness.Rachel Mann is an Anglican priest, poet, scholar and broadcaster. The author of eleven books, her work has been shortlisted for the international Michael Ramsey Prize, and has been called 'exceptional' (Rowan Williams) and 'astonishing' (Michael Symmons Roberts). She regularly broadcasts on BBC Radio 2 and 4.

Gender, Sexuality, Illness and God

Dazzling Darkness - 2nd Edition

Powerful and moving readings, stories and poems for Easter. The accounts of scapegoating, of power and violence and hope found in the gospels will always be current and significant. The story of Jesus Christ and of those who surrounded him remains a defining narrative of our time. Using artistic and theological licence, Rachel Mann writes with the voices of the characters involved in the biblical accounts of passion and resurrection. Unafraid to explore the darkest aspects evoked by these events, she says: 'The intention of both the more humorous and the visceral stories is to play with abiding themes of death and new life in ways which - in church contexts at least - break unusual ground. Some readers may find some of the language crude and offensive. It is not my intention to offend or outrage, but - to indicate that there are places and experiences where blasphemy is prayer and prayer is blasphemy.'

Poems and Stories of Passion and Resurrection

The Risen Dust

Wyll Andersen

The city of Scrapyard is overrun by Gangsters and criminals. Luke Damon is one such gangster, but his ambitions are great. He strives to become The Steel Overlord, the head of the criminal underworld. But this is not an easy task. The Police Force has an iron grip over the city and plan to keep it that way, not to mention the other gangs of the city that fight for the same goal. In this first book of the Black Jacket series, join Luke as he begins to assemble his gang and fight off against the tyrannical grip of the Police Force.

Craterfields

A Kingdom of Love is a lyrical interrogation of the place of the sacred and profane in a demythologised world from poet and Anglican parish priest, Rachel Mann.

Rachel Mann

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