ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Reading work in progress, to help clarify and correct the ideas contained within, is one of the most generous things that academic colleagues do for one another. They also provide detailed replies to email questions that come from out of the blue. I am grateful for the thoughtful comments and challenging insights contributed by numerous scholars, even as the remaining faults are my own. Thank you to Younus Mirza, Burton Visotzky, David Cunningham, Umar AbdAllah, Scott Alexander, Reza Aslan, Deeana Klepper, Dalia Marx, Ingrid Mattson, Kevin Minister, John Pawlikowski, Laurel Schneider, Elsie Stern, Seung Ai Yang, and Jared Beverly. I am also indebted to the Lilly Foundation for awarding a Faculty Fellowship to support the research and writing of this book. The book would not be here without Amy Caldwell’s enthusiasm for the project and the amazing staff at Beacon Press. And I would not be able to accomplish much at all without the patience, faith, and love of my soul mate, Mark Rosenberg.