Clinton Bennett was awarded the PhD in Islamic Studies by Birmingham University in 1990. He also holds the M.Ed. from Oxford and his undergraduate degree in Theology from Manchester University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society and of the Royal Anthropological Institute and uses ethnography in his research. He is especially interested in how sensitive but critical issues in Religious Studies can be explored without causing offense to religious insiders. He is a specialist in the study of Islam with a focus on modern Muslim thinkers and movements. An ordained Baptist minister, he has worked as a missionary in Bangladesh, as co-pastor of a multi-racial inner city congregation, on the staff of the British Council of Churches and as a College and University chaplain and teacher. He has written nine books. He has combined academic study of Islam with participation in interfaith dialogue, serving on several World Council of Churches committees. He has advised local mosques, chaired school governing bodies and represented an NGO at the UN. He currently teaches at the State University of New York at New Paltz. His homepage is www.clintonbennett.net