Foreword
T
he Religious Life in History series introduces the richness and diversity
of religious thought, practice, experience, and institutions as they are
found in living traditions throughout the world.
Some of the religious traditions included in the Religious Life in History
series are defined by geography and cultural arenas, while others are defined
by their development across cultural and geographic boundaries. In all cases,
however, the introductions seek to take full account of the variety within each
tradition while keeping in sight the traits and patterns that encourage both
scholars and members of various religious coi:nmunities to distinguish a partic-
ular religious tradition from others around it. Moreover, as a set of introduc-
tions to quite different religious traditions, the series naturally invites
comparison between different ways ofbeing religious and encourages critical
reflection on religion as a human phenomenon more generally. Thus, in addi-
tion to containing volumes on different religious traditions, the series also in-
cludes a core text on the study of religion, which is intended to aid the kinds
of comparative inquiry and critical reflection that the series fosters through its
introductions to religion in particular cultural and historical contexts.
The basic texts in the Religious Life in History series all provide narrative
descriptions of a religious tradition, but each also approaches its subject with
an interpretive orientation appropriate to its focus. Some traditions lend them-
selves more to developmental, others to more topical, studies. This lack of a
single interpretive stance in the series is itself instructive. It reflects the inter-
pretive choices made by the different authors, choices informed by a deepxii