Series Editor J. Gordon Melton is distinguished professor emeritus of American religious history at Baylor University's Institute for Studies in Religion. He also served as the director of the Institute for the Study of American Religion in Woodway, Texas. He is the author or editor of dozens of books on religion, including Melton's Encyclopedia of American Religions; Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Belief and Practice; Religious Celebrations: An Encyclopedia of Holidays, Festivals, Solemn Observances, and Spiritual Commemorations; and Encyclopedia of Protestantism, part of the six-volume Encyclopedia of World Religions set, which he edited for Facts On File.
Author Maxine Hanks has written extensively about Mormon theology, especially as it relates to feminism. Her books include Women and Authority and Getting Together With Yesterday. She has contributed essays to numerous scholarly journals and has lectured at the University of Utah and the Harvard Divinity School among others.
Contributors Jean Kinney Williams, Steven Otfinoski, and James Buckley Jr. are veteran authors of nonfiction for young readers, with numerous titles to their credit.