Friends Of God

Friends Of God by John Renard Prophets saints martyrs
sages and seers?one of the richest repositories of lore
about such exemplary religious figures belongs to the
worlds approximately 1.3 billion Muslims. Illuminating
some of the most delightful tales in world religious
literature this engaging book is the first truly global
overview of Islamic hagiography. John Renard tells of the
characters beyond the Quran and Hadith whose stories of
piety and service to God and humanity have captured hearts
and minds for nearly fourteen hundred years. Renards
thematic approach to the major characters narratives
social and cultural contexts and theoretical concepts of
this remarkable treasury of tales based on material
ranging from the eighth to the twentieth centuries and
from countries ranging from Morocco to Malaysia provides
insight into the ways in which these stories have
functioned in the lives of Muslims from diverse cultural
social economic and political backgrounds. The book also
serves as a useful and evocative tool for approaching the
vast geographical and chronological sweep of Islamic
civilization.