University of California Press Crossing Confessional Boundaries: Exemplary Lives in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic Traditions (The S. Mark Taper Foundation Imprint in Jewish Studies)

Arguably the single most important element in Abrahamic cross-confessional relations has been an ongoing mutual interest in perennial spiritual and ethical exemplars of one another’s communities. Ranging from Late Antiquity through the Middle Ages, Crossing Confessional Boundaries explores the complex roles played by saints, sages, and Friends of God in the communal and intercommunal lives of Christians, Muslims, and Jews across the Mediterranean world, from Spain and North Africa to the Middle East to the Balkans. By examining these stories in their broad institutional, social, and cultural contexts, Crossing Confessional Boundaries reveals unique theological insights into the interlocking histories of the Abrahamic faiths.   Review "There is much to appreciate in what Renard has produced. . . . Renard's book will provide a concise overview of a significant corpus of recent scholarship on late antiquity, and the significance therein of holy persons. His juxtaposition of Jewish, Christian, and Islamic literatures will provide readers with an awareness of these religious traditions' interconnections that many may not have otherwise realized."-- "Journal of Early Christian History" " Crossing Confessional Boundaries remains an excellent hagiography manual."-- "Critical Bulletin of the Islamic Annals" "A smashing success; the literature Renard reviews is extensive and his ability to present the most salient points toward future scholarship is impressive. He elaborates a genealogy of the exemplary figure that will surely shape any future work in the field."-- "Reading Religion" "John Renard is one of few scholars to possess the intellectual toolkit and dexterity necessary for the breadth of Crossing Confessional Boundaries and the ways in which it weaves multiple historiographical strands together. . . . [Renard] reminds us that Late Antiquity was not a period of crisis and decline. . . . [but] was one of deep cross-cultural contacts and complex interfaith encounters."-- "Mediterranean Seminar" "The book becomes both roadmap and toolkit, guiding readers though the use of hagiography and equipping them to apply it as a resource for fresh scholarship."-- "Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations" From the Inside Flap "Renard offers for the first time a diachronic, comparative, and insightfully theorized account of hagiographical writing across the premodern Abrahamic traditions. This book not only synthesizes disparate source material; it also analyzes the sociopolitical and literary functions of hagiography in an Islamic context, a much-needed contribution to religious studies."&;Nancy Khalek, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, Brown University "This book is a pioneering comparative study of hagiographical traditions in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Distilling fresh analytical perspectives from his comprehensive survey of key primary texts and modern scholarly works, Renard establishes comparative Abrahamic hagiography as a new field&;a landmark achievement in religious studies."&;Ahmet T. Karamustafa, Professor of History, University of Maryland " Crossing Confessional Boundaries is an effort to write the history of religion on a grand scale. It is nothing short of a comprehensive 'grammar of the sacred' among the three monotheistic traditions of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam."&;Christian C. Sahner, Associate Professor of Islamic History, University of Oxford   From the Back Cover "Renard offers for the first time a diachronic, comparative, and insightfully theorized account of hagiographical writing across the premodern Abrahamic traditions. This book not only synthesizes disparate source material; it also analyzes the sociopolitical and literary functions of hagiography in an Islamic context, a much-needed contribution to religious studies."--Nancy Khalek, Associate Professor of Reli