Dr. Manuel Vásquez is a professor in the Department of Religion at University of Florida. His research focuses on Religions of Latin America and U.S. Latinos, Method and Th eory, Religious Pluralism, Transnational Migrations and Globalization. His recent book, More Th an Belief: A Materialist Th eory of Religion (Oxford University Press, 2010), challenges the traditional idea that religions can be understood primarily as texts to be interpreted, decoded, or translated.

Dr. Kathryn Loft on is an Assistant Professor of Religious Studies and American Studies at Yale University. Her research investigates the inseparability of religion and its cultural constructions, and the extent to which culture itself is embedded in religious histories. Her recent book, Oprah: Th e Gospel of an Icon (University of California Press, 2011), uses the work of Oprah Winfrey to explore the formation of religion in modern America.

Dr. Elijah Siegler is an Associate Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the College of Charleston. He is a historian of American religions, with expertise on new religious movements, religion and popular culture, and Asian religions in America. His book, New Religious Movements (Prentice Hall, 2007), takes a more historical and cultural approach to the study of New Religious Movements.