Religious Studies

Indexes and Databases | Reference Sources | Finding Journals | Selected Internet Sites | Need Help?

Indexes and Databases

In religious studies, topics are frequently interdisciplinary in nature, so students might find it useful to use both the indexes and databases listed below as well as those listed on the pages for sociology, anthropology, and history. In addition, newspaper articles can be useful primary sources for topics about particular religious groups. To this end, newspaper databases that might be particularly useful include: LexisNexis Academic, Newspaper Source, and Ethnic NewsWatch.

Academic Search Complete (Coverage is from the early 1970's for some titles to the present): This interdisciplinary database indexes over 4360 scholarly journals, popular magazines, and journals of commentary. More than 3430 of the journals indexed provide the full-text of the articles within the database. An option for limiting to peer-reviewed journals exists to increase the scholarly nature of a search.
Alternative Press Archive (1969-90): Indexes over 250 alternative, radical, and left journals, newspapers, and magazines. Covers topics of cultural, economic, political, and social change, including those related to women, women's rights, and other women's issues. Includes selected abstracts from research journals. Updated quarterly.
Alternative Press Index (1991- ): Indexes over 250 alternative, radical, and left journals, newspapers, and magazines. Covers topics of cultural, economic, political, and social change, including those related to women, women's rights, and other women's issues. Includes selected abstracts from research journals. Updated quarterly.
ArticleFirst (1990- )
: This searchable, comprehensive, interdisciplinary magazine and journal article references database is useful primarily as a current awareness tool. It indexes over 12,500 journals and magazines by key words of article titles. The database also allows the user to browse references by journal title and issue.
Arts and Humanities Citation Index (ISI)
ATLA Religion Database (1949- )
: This is the most comprehensive database in the field of religious studies and theology available to Wooster students, faculty, and staff. In addition, it covers topics in related interdisciplinary areas such as sociology, anthropology, psychology, history, medicine, law, and business. It indexes a combination of journal articles, book reviews, and scholarly essays and conference papers found in books. Over 600+ journals are indexed fully or selectively indexed for relevant articles each year.
ATLASerials, Religion Collection (EBSCOhost)
Humanities International Complete (EBSCOhost)
New Testament Abstracts (1965- ) WOO Reference BS410 .N35: This print index provides indexing to and abstract summaries of scholarly journals articles about New Testament Bible passages. A convenient scripture index is provided.
Old Testament Abstracts (1978- ) WOO Reference BS410 .O42
: This print index provides indexing to and abstract summaries of scholarly journals articles about Old Testament Bible passages. A convenient scripture index is provided.
Oxford Scholarship Online
Periodicals Index Online (1770-1995): Indexes articles in scholarly journals from their initial inception through approximately seven years prior to the current date (e.g., in 2002, indexes through 1995). It indexes by article title keyword, very broad subject categories, author, journal title, and general keyword. An exceptionally useful tool for research on topics that require using older periodicals.
Religion and Philosophy Collection (1974- )
: This database covers such topics in religion, theology, and philosophy as world religions, major denominations, biblical studies, religious history, epistemology, political philosophy, philosophy of language, moral philosophy, and the history of philosophy. It provides indexing, abstracts, and full text for over 290 journals.
Religious and Theological Abstracts (1958- ) WOO Reference BR1 .R286: This quarterly print source indexes and provides English language abstract summaries to scholarly journal articles from over 400 English, Hebrew, and modern European language journals in religion and theology. In includes topics on Christianity, Judaism, and other world religions. It's arranged by subject classification, enabling easy browsing. It provides subject, author, and scripture indexing as well. It overlaps somewhat, with the ATLA Religion Database, but includes indexing for unique journal titles as well.

Reference Sources

Reference sources are particularly useful for background information on topics, as well as definitions on concepts and specialized terminology. The specialized encyclopedias and dictionaries are representative of the types of sources available in our reference collection in the field of religious studies. There are hundreds of other similar sources on the shelves next to those listed here, so this is best used as a browsers guide to religious studies reference sources.

Given the extensive number of reference sources in our collection on religious studies topics, students might find the Library of Congress Classification Outline for the call numbers beginning with B - Philosophy, Psychology, Religion of some assistance. This gives a thorough outline of the call number system in the area of religious and theological studies and will help students browse the collection with a better understanding of where to look for needed information.

Following is a brief outline of religious studies call numbers, but the link above gives much more detail if a more specific browsing area is being sought:

BL Religions. Mythology. Rationalism
BM Judaism
BP Islam. Bahaism. Theosophy, etc.
BQ Buddhism
BR Christianity
BS The Bible.
BT Doctrinal Theology
BV Practical Theology
BX Christian Denominations

In addition, students are encouraged to consult with a librarian if they are not finding the information they need as there are sources throughout the collection that might be of assistance as well.

The Anchor Bible Dictionary. 1992. WOO Reference BS440 .A54 1992: This multi-volume, encyclopedic dictionary is one of the most comprehensive and authoritative dictionaries of the Bible available.
Encyclopaedia Britannica Online
New Encyclopaedia Britannica--print edition WOO Reference AE5 .E363 2002: This interdisciplinary encyclopedia contains a wide variety of articles on religions of the world and topics related to religious studies. In addition, in its online environment, it links to web sites that are relevant to specific topics, making it a convenient way to discover some useful, authoritative web sites on a given topic.
Encyclopaedia Judaica. 1971-72. WOO Reference BM50 .E5: This multi-volume encyclopedia and its' supplements through 1992, make up the most authoritative and comprehensive encyclopedia of Judaism available.
Encyclopedia of Religion. 1987. WOO Reference BL31 .E46 1987: This multi-volume encyclopedia is a standard in the field of religious studies. Out of the hundreds of religious studies reference sources found in our library, this is the one faculty refer students to the most.
New Catholic Encyclopedia. 1967. WOO Reference BX841 .N44 1967: This multi-volume encyclopedia and its' supplements serve as the most comprehensive and authoritative encyclopedia of Catholicism.
The New Encyclopedia of Islam. 2001. WOO Reference BP40 .G42 2001: A useful volume to update information found in E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam, 1913-1936 WOO Reference DS35.53 .E53 1987 and the continuous publication of the standard Encyclopaedia of Islam WOO Reference DS37 .E523 published volumes beginning with 1954 to the present. Probably one of the most useful for current day issues on Islam.
OhioLINK Electronic Reference Books
Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 3rd ed. 1997. WOO Reference BR95 .O8 1997: This a highly respected, standard dictionary of the Christian Church. Most articles include very useful references to research resources.
Oxford Reference Online Premium
The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen. 1991. WOO Reference BQ130 .L492513 1991: This is one of several reference sources available in the area of Buddhism.
World Christian Encyclopedia: A Comparative Survey of Churches and Religions in the Modern World. 2nd ed. 2001. WOO Reference BR157 .W67 2001: This two-volume encyclopedia contains some of the most comprehensive summary and statistical data on contemporary Christian churches throughout the world.

Finding Journals

...by the TITLE of the journal from the Libraries' eJournals/Journals web page.

... finding journals by a particular PUBLISHER (e.g., journals published by the American Jewish Committee):

     CONSORT KEYWORD SEARCH :
     a:american jewish committee and s:periodicals

...finding journals with a particular FOCUS (e.g., journals on theology, islam, or the bible):

     CONSORT KEYWORD SEARCHES :
     s:theology and s:periodicals
     s:islam and s:periodicals
     s:bible and s:periodicals

Selected Internet Sites

Religious studies and faith group web sites are too numerous to list in this brief-format guide to internet sites. Below are listed some of the most well-known and well-respected gateway sites to religious groups, religious studies, and religious and theological directory and reference information. Many of those listed below are selective lists attempting to assist users in their efforts to find quality web sites.

Academic Info: Religion Gateway—World Religions—Religious Studies—Comparative Religion: Part of a larger, non-profit, user-supported organization that tries to provide structured access to the web. This is a comprehensive, partially-annotated to information on religious faiths and religious studies on the web.
ARDA: The Association of Religious Data Archives: Includes data on Christian denominations in the United States, broken down by country-wide, by state, and by county.
Google Directory > Society > Religion and Spirituality: One of the most comprehensive web site directories on religious groups, spirituality, conferences, religious texts, and related information. Each entry is briefly annotated to assist the user with selection.
Guide to Internet Resources for Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion (Wabash Center): A comprehensive, selective, annotated listing of internet sites that were viewed as useful to those teaching religion and theology at the undergraduate and graduate level. The front menu is clearly outlined with direct links to a wide variety of topics ranging from religious faith groups to directories to interdisciplinary studies. Each category links to sites that contain useful content, course syllabi, full text sources, listserv information, etc.
Religious Worlds: A comprehensive, selective, subject classified, critically annotated list of web sites related to the study of religions.
Virtual Religion Index (Mahlon H. Smith): This carefully-selected, annotated, subject-classified, award-winning site, is often referred to as the "best place to start" when seeking religious studies information that is available on the web. In includes information on the major world faith groups, other faith groups within the framework of regional or historical time-period arrangement, and other subdivisions of study within religions studies.
Voice of the Shuttle: Religious Studies: Part of a larger effort to provide classified and briefly annotated lists of links of interest to humanities disciplines in communities of higher education. The Religious Studies pages contain a fairly comprehensive, selected list of web sites covering many aspects of religious studies including specific religious faith groups.
Yahoo! Society and Culture > Religion and Spirituality: One of the most comprehensive, annotated, subject listings of religious and theological web sites available on the Internet. It covers all religions, sects, and denominations as well as links to religious texts, doctrinal works, and socio-religious web sites. It includes also links to conferences, organizations, libraries, religious publishers and booksellers, etc.

Need Help?

Julia Gustafson
Access Services Librarian
330/263-2315