(, 1st ed. 2009)

For reasons that varied widely, leaders and thinkers from Mexico to the Ottoman Empire and from China to the Indian subcontinent sought to reform existing religions, develop new spiritual practices, promote innovative texts, and, on occasion, even create new religions.

During the era of revolution and emancipation in the north Atlantic, 'slavery' and 'freedom' were fluid and contested concepts. In this collection the authors introduce the voices of slaves, slave-holders, legislators, and others, who struggled to critique, overturn, justify, or simply describe the social order in which they found themselves.