Alan M. Olson is a Professor of the Philosophy of Religion at Boston University.

"This ... volume includes some noteworthy lectures focusing on problems of comparative studies of religions and cultures. Part I is methodological (Huston Smith, Peter Slater, Edith Wyschogrod), Part II scrutinizes specific religious cultures (J. G. Arapura, Robert A. F. Thurman, Robert Lee, Pheme Perkins), and Part III is more autobiographical (Leroy S. Rouner, J. N. Findlay, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Frederick G. Lawrence). Each of these authors knows at least one religious tradition well, and possesses comparative competence and philosophical sophistication." —Sociological Analysis