The topic of religion, violence and terrorism has drawn increasing attention from academic and terrorism experts, policymakers, government agencies, and the media globally. This Special Issue will be unique in that it will not only have several chapters on methodological issues but a majority devoted to contemporary case studies from major religious traditions. In each case, the author will initially give a brief background on the religious resources (scriptural, theological and historical) in the tradition that are related to violence and conflict before describing and analyzing whether and why the primary causes are religion and/or political economy (ethnicity, tribal, etc.)