Mahmoud M. Ayoub is currently Faculty Associate in Shi’ite Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations and Co-Director of the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations at Hartford Seminary. Ayoub is also a visiting professor at University of Balamand (Lebanon) and editorial consultant for the Oxford Dictionary of Islam. From 1988 to 2008 Ayoub was a Professor and director of Islamic Studies in the Department of Religion at Temple University. His publications include The Crisis of Muslim History: Religion and Politics in Early Islam (2005), Islam: Faith and History (2004), and The Qur’an and Its Interpreters, vol. 1-2 (1984/1992), as well as numerous articles and book chapters. Born in South Lebanon, Ayoub earned a BA at the American University of Beirut, MA at the University of Pennsylvania, and PhD at Harvard University. He is also a Professor Emeritus at Temple University, USA.