The Revd Canon Professor James Woodward, Principal
Principal of Sarum College. James is a practical theologian who specialises in health and healing, old age, theological reflection and end of life care.
Shoshana Boyd Gelfand is a senior member of the London-based Pears Foundation team and director of the foundation’s operating programme, JHub. In this role, she founded JDOV, a Jewish TED-style video platform which invites inspiring speakers to give the “Jewish talk of their life”: www.jdov.org.
Shoshana appears regularly on BBC Radio’s “Pause for Thought” and “Something Understood” programmes and also presents frequently at conferences such as TEDxJerusalem, Limmud, and Greenbelt on issues around faith, identity and leadership. She is the author of numerous articles on Jewish leadership and innovation, as well as The Barefoot Book of Jewish Tales, an illustrated collection of Jewish stories for all faiths and all ages.
Previously, Shoshana served as Vice-President of the Wexner Heritage Foundation in New York, and she currently serves on the faculty of Faith in Leadership and the board of the International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations.
She was ordained as a rabbi in 1997 at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America.
Tom Clammer OC trained for ordination at Wescott House in Cambridge, and then served in parishes in the city of Gloucester, and in rural Gloucestershire before becoming Precentor of Salisbury. Since 2019 he has worked as a freelance theological educator, liturgist and spiritual director. His PhD thesis examined theology of evil and the devil in the liturgy. He is a novice brother of the Anglican Order of Cistercians.
Jonathan is the Director of Learning for Ministry for the Methodist Church in Britain. A Methodist presbyter, he has served in local church ministry, in chaplaincy in a range of contexts, as a university lecturer and in theological education. Born in the Black Country and raised in the Cambridgeshire Fens, he’s enjoyed living and working both in the USA and the UK, and in places of great diversity and human variety. He currently lives in north London.
Azariah France-Williams is a priest at the Ascension Hulme, a member of the HeartEdge church network which focuses work around four C’s: congregations, culture, commerce, and compassion. He has been a priest with the Church of England for 10 years. For the first 6 years he ministered on a group of housing estates in an area of deprivation. His role included community organising, creating social events and supporting people in great need. For the next 4 years, Azariah spent time in a suburban setting, enjoying coffee, enduring a ParkRun, and roaming the parish hearing stories.
He writes poetry and prose, is a podcaster, and his most recent book is Ghostship: Institutional Racism and the Church of England, available through SCM Press here.
Email: shacker@sarum.ac.uk
Web: www.sophiehacker.com
Sophie Hacker has artwork in public and private collections across the UK and abroad. Her current projects focus on stained glass, collaborations with musicians and poets and numerous ecclesiastical commissions.
Email: Deborah.Lewer@glasgow.ac.uk
Debbie Lewer is Senior Lecturer in History of Art at the University of Glasgow. She has worked there since 2001, prior to which she taught at Manchester University, University of East Anglia, University College London and Christie’s Education.
Her PhD was on Dada in Zurich and she is a specialist and has published widely on 20th-century German art in particular. She co-runs an MLitt programme at Glasgow, Art: Politics: Transgression and teaches across a wide range of other topics, including architecture, photography, literature and performance and on earlier periods in art. In 2009-10 she held a Senior Alexander von Humboldt Research Fellowship at the University of Bonn. She has also been a visiting lecturer at Northwestern University, Evanston USA.
She has a special interest in art and theology and is currently preparing a book in this field. She has also been involved in the training of ordinands and is a regular speaker in churches, on retreats and at conferences and festivals. In her spare time she paints.
Twitter: @RevRachelMann
Website: www.rachelmann.co.uk
Church Website: www.st-nicholas-church.org.uk
Rachel Mann is the newly appointed Area Dean of Bury and Rossendale. Her most recent book is a debut novel, The Gospel of Eve. Rachel’s research and writing interests include poetry, literature and spirituality, as well as trauma, gender and sexuality. She is a Visiting Teaching Fellow at the Manchester Writing School, Manchester Met University.
Jolyon Mitchell is Professor of Communication, Arts and Religion at Edinburgh University. His work has focused on peace building, violence and arts in warfare.
Pádraig Ó Tuama is a poet and theologian who brings interests in language, conflict and theology to his work. He hosts Poetry Unbound from On Being and his work has been published in Poetry Ireland, the Academy of American Poets Poem-A-Day and Harvard Review, among others. His books include volumes of poetry, prayers and prose. From 2014-2019 he was the leader of Corrymeela, Ireland’s oldest reconciliation community.
Pádraig lives in Ireland with his partner Paul Doran, with whom he co-founded the Tenx9 storytelling project. Pádraig’s recently published work includes Borders and Belonging, coauthored with Glenn Jordan; an essay in The Book of Queer Prophets, edited by by Ruth Hunt; 15 sonnets on the stations in When Did You See Me Naked, edited by Reaves and Tombs. Pádraig holds a pontifical degree in Divinity validated by St. Patrick’s college in Maynooth; an MTh from Queen’s in Belfast (dissertation: Jesus and the Marginalised; a narrative exploration of human encounter in the gospel of Mark) and is currently a PhD candidate at the School of Critical Studies at the University of Glasgow exploring poetry and prayer. Additionally he holds qualifications in adult education and conflict resolution, with emphasis on group dynamics of conflict.
Mark Oakley is Dean of Chapel at St John’s College, Cambridge. He writes and broadcasts on poetry, spirituality and human rights. He is a trustee of the Civil Liberties Trust, an Ambassador for Stop Hate UK, and a Visiting Lecturer at Kings College, London.
Twitter: @CSBibleViolence
Web: csbvbristol.org.uk
Facebook: facebook.com/CSBVBristolBaptistCollege
Helen was a nephrologist (kidney doctor) when God called her to Baptist ministry. She trained at Bristol Baptist College and then became Associate Minister at Victoria Park Baptist Church in South Bristol, where she worked part-time for six years. She is now Associate Minister at Westbury on Trym Baptist Church, Bristol.
Helen has a Masters in Missional Church Leadership, another Masters in Biblical Studies, and a PhD in Old Testament. Her main research interests are in the narrative portions of the Hebrew Bible. Her second Masters dissertation was on ‘total annihilation’ in Deuteronomy and Joshua, her PhD thesis was on aspects of humour in the book of Kings, and her current research interest is in violence and Judges.
Helen is passionate about helping people to get to grips with the Bible, because she has seen its power to transform lives. She loves to study it, preach it, teach it, encourage others to study and understand it, and help others to learn to read it in its original languages.
Helen loves to go on adventures with her husband and three teenage daughters, and to read anything that makes her think.
Recent Publications:
Mark Pryce is Director of Ministry for Church of England Birmingham, and Chaplain to Her Majesty The Queen. A published poet and practical theologian, Mark’s work contributes to the vital place of poetry in Christian spirituality, liturgy and public theology, gender studies and ethnographic research.
Professor Anthony G. Reddie is the Director of the Oxford Centre for Religion and Culture in Regent’s Park College, in the University of Oxford. He is also an Extraordinary Professor of Theological Ethics and a Research Fellow with the University of South Africa. He is the first Black person to get an ‘A’ rating in Theology and Religious studies in the South African National Research Foundation. This designation means that he is a leading international researcher. He has a BA in History and a PhD in Education (with theology) both degrees conferred by the University of Birmingham. He is a prolific author of books, articles and chapters in edited books. His latest book is the co-edited Intercultural Preaching edited with Seidel Abel Boanerges with Pamela Searle.
Reddie is the author of Theologizing Brexit: A Liberationist and Postcolonial Critique (Routledge, 2019). This book is the first intercultural and postcolonial theological exploration of the Brexit phenomenon. His previous book was Journeying to Justice (Paternoster Press, 2017) (co-edited with Wale Hudson Roberts and Gale Richards). He is the Editor of Black Theology: An International Journal. He is a recipient of the Archbishop of Canterbury’s 2020 Lambeth, Lanfranc Award for Education and Scholarship, given for ‘exceptional and sustained contribution to Black Theology in Britain and Beyond’.
Anne Richards is the Church of England’s National Adviser for Mission Theology, New Religious Movements and Alternative Spiritualities. She is the convener of the Mission Theology Advisory Group (MTAG), an ecumenical group of mission academics and practitioners, which resources churches in the areas of spirituality, theology, reconciliation, evangelism and mission. She also looks after matters concerning the ministry of deliverance.
In her role as National Adviser, Anne is a prolific writer and speaker and has produced a large number of mission-focussed books and articles. These include (with MTAG) The Search for Faith and the Witness of the Church (1996); Presence and Prophecy, (2002); Sense Making Faith (2007) and Unreconciled? (2011). Resources on mission and social action are available at www.dispossessionproject.org and she also manages www.spiritualjourneys.org.uk for spiritual seekers. Anne also regularly writes on rural mission and on child theology, including Through the Eyes of a Child (2009) and Children in the Bible (2013).
Nick is a practical theologian currently working for the Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England on the implementation of recommendations from the 2017 Setting God’s People Free report. This role works across dioceses to shape a culture that better enables the everyday faith of the whole people of God and a flourishing of diverse Kingdom callings for the whole mission of God in the whole of life. Before his current role Nick worked in discipleship and ministry development for the Diocese of Southwark and prior to that spent 25 years in youth work and ministry, including being Director of the Institute for Children Youth and Mission and editor of the Journal of Youth and Theology. Nick’s research interests lie in the use of ethnographic, qualitative and action research methodologies to better understand faith formation & Christian identity in a secular age, missional engagement in social vocations and how participation in Christian practices impact our being in the world. Originally from Yorkshire, Nick now lives in South London.
Email: director@gohealth.org.uk
Tel: 07398 164477
Twitter: @GillianStraine
The Revd Dr Gillian Straine is the Director of the Guild of Health and St Raphael, an ecumenical charity dedicated to the healing ministry. An Anglican priest and physicist, her books include Introducing Science and Religion (SPCK, 2014) and Cancer: A Pilgrim Companion (SPCK, 2017). She is trustee of the Christian Evidence Society, The Science and Religion forum and elected fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion.
Web: janewallmangirdlestoneauthor.com
Jane Wallman-Girdlestone is an Honorary Research Fellow at Aberdeen University in Disability Theology. An ordained Anglican, Jane specialises in spirituality and mental health. She writes psychological thrillers and poetry, and a book on disability theology from a liberationist perspective.
Alison Webster is a freelance practical and mission theologian, who offers spiritual accompaniment. Alison is an experienced group and workshop facilitator, with a particular passion for using the arts to encourage personal and social transformation. She has worked on issues of social justice, community organising and social action within an Anglican context for many years, and is of Methodist heritage. Her writing and reflections have focused on issues of sexuality, wellbeing, and identity. She has published four books, most recently, ‘Found Out: Transgressive Faith and Sexuality’ (DLT 2017), along with numerous articles and resource books. She is founder (and now emeritus) editor of two international journals, ‘Theology and Sexuality’, and ‘Political Theology’.
Tel: +44 (0)1722 424800
Dave is a trained carpenter/joiner. After a number of years in the construction industry, Dave joined Sarum College in 2004 and is involved in a variety of the college’s building works.
E jchapman@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424813
Joan joined Sarum College in 2016.
E library@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424803
Jayne (MA DipLib) studied at St Andrews University and University College London. Before coming to Sarum, she worked in a variety of business and technical libraries and then went to sea, as librarian onboard the QE2 and QM2.
E Gary Gifford
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Gary joined Sarum College in 2020. Previously he was Operations Manager for BMI Healthcare and Catering and Administration Manager with the British Army.
E Mark Manterfield
T +44 (0)1722 424832
Mark’s background includes studying for a degree in Hotel and Catering Administration; spending a year as a church volunteer in Manchester; working in various management roles in the hotel industry; and spending a period of time living as a resident at Hilfield Friary, Dorset. Mark joined Sarum College in 1997. In 2008 he completed the CIPFA Certificate in Charity Finance and Accountancy and in 2011 he completed an MSc in Charity Accountancy and Financial Management with Distinction through London South Bank University, gaining ‘the best set of MSc marks for some years’. At Sarum his portfolio includes finance, human resources and safeguarding.
E Christine Nielsen-Craig
T +44 (0)1722 424812
Christine worked in public relations and as a journalist before joining Sarum College in 2008. She has a master’s degree in Communication for Development from Ohio University, USA.
E aogden@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424826
Alison joined Sarum in 2008. She administers the short course and events programme and bookings. She studied singing and violin at Trinity College of Music, London and was previously Assistant to the Director of Opera at the Royal College of Music.
E catering@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0) 1722 424809
Tim joined Sarum College in 2017 and is active in his local church.
E rpeacock@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424833
E cwhimpenny@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424827
Chris administers Winchester-validated postgraduate study programmes. She joined Sarum College in 2019.
E catering@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424809
Tamy joined Sarum College in 2006. She and her husband run Lee’s Fish & Chips in Salisbury.
E ayoung@sarum.ac.uk
T +44 (0)1722 424820
Annette Young has a BA (Hons) in Theology and Religious Studies from the University of Winchester. She joined the staff of STETS in 2008 transferring to Sarum College in February 2015. Annette manages the Principal’s diary and oversees the College’s ministerial training programmes.
