Contributors to this groundbreaking book include histori-ans, biblical specialists, theologians, ethicists, and scholars of comparative religions. They examine, from a wide variety of perspectives, the relationship between religious tradition and manhood. The broad range of topics considered-dynamics of power in shaping masculine identity, the role religion plays in shaping masculine identity, the experience of myth, ritual, spiritual discipline, and community-suggest enormous practical application in the daily lives of all men.

"This book establishes the study of men and religion as a serious scholarly field (and rescues it from the flashy best-sellers). [It] demonstrates that serious issues in men's studies are being seriously and productively addressed by religious scholars. Extended commentary by the editors gives structure and focus to the field by delineating the ques-tions and options confronting the study of men in a religious context, and by identifying the insistent consensus: Men need not settle for the prevailing patterns of manhood or of religion."