Comprised of primary sources assembled from a broad chronological and geographic spectrum, Islamic Theological Themes is a comprehensive anthology of primary Islamic sacred texts in translation. The volume includes rare and never before translated selections, all freshly situated and introduced with a view to opening doors into the larger world of Islamic life, belief, and culture. From pre-theological material on the scriptural end of the spectrum, to the more practical material at the other, John Renard broadens our concepts of what counts as “Islamic theology,” situating Islamic theological literature within the context of the emerging sub-discipline of Relational/Comparative Theology. Divided into five parts, students and scholars will find this collection to be an indispensible tool.
John Renard is Professor of Theological Studies at Saint Louis University. His many books include Seven Doors to Islam: Spirituality and the Religious Life of Muslims, Windows on the House of Islam, Friends of God: Islamic Images of Piety, Commitment, and Servanthood, and Tales of God’s Friends: Islamic Hagiography in Translation, all from UC Press.
"Using representative primary sources from the seventh century to the present – many of them freshly translated into English – John Renard’s book offers an accessible introduction to all the major trends of Islamic theology. Without privileging any one approach, Sunni or Shi'i, Hanbali or Mu'tazili, Philosophical or Sufi, it attempts to do justice to them all. Comprehensive in scope, the book is indispensable for serious students of Islam as well as anyone interested in comparisons between monotheistic religions."—Alexander Treiger, Dalhousie University
"Another superb anthology of Islamic texts meticulouslyedited by John Renard. This comprehensive and highly accessible reader - the first in English - is destined to have a long shelf life as the main source book for all scholars, students and general readers interested in Islamic theology."—Ahmet T. Karamustafa, Professsor of History, University of Maryland
"John Renard put together a highly absorbing and very useful volume. Never before have this many voices of theology and philosophy in Islam been collected in an English book, showcasing the variety and the strength of Muslim intellectual traditions."—Frank Griffel, Yale University, author of Al-Ghazali’s Philosophical Theology
480 pp.6 x 9
9780520281882$95.00|£80.00Hardcover
May 2014