Menlo School Library: World Religions: Topic resources

Reference Sites

BBC - Religions
General information about a large variety of religious beliefs.
Encyclopedia Mythica
More than 6,800 entries on folklore, mythology, and religion.
Encyclopedia of Religion and Society
Comprehensive information about many religions from the Hartford Institute for Religious Research.
Internet History Sourcebooks
Primary sources from history. Use the links to go to the appropriate time period.
Kenyon College Department of Religious Studies
Collection of web links for a number of informational religion web pages.
Overview of World Religions Project
Directory of world religions, organized by geographical area.
Religious Movements
Extensive information about many religions. Click "Religious Group Profiles" on the rights side of the page for a directory. In the process of being moved from the University of Virginia to the University of Missouri; presently located at Archive.org.

Open Access Repositories

Brill
Scholarly publisher that offers resources across disciplines, including religious studies, with a focus on high-quality academic research in the humanities and social sciences.
Project MUSE
Offers some free journal articles and books related to religious studies, ethics, and intersectionality.
Religions (MDPI)
An open-access journal specifically focused on religious studies and interfaith issues.

Christianity

7 Key Differences Between Protestant and Catholic Doctrine
A list of issues that differentiate Catholicism and Protestantism.
African Methodist Episcopal Church
Official site of the historic AME church.
Comparing the Beliefs of Roman Catholics & Conservative Protestants
A comparison of Catholic and Protestant beliefs, from Religious Tolerance.
The Episcopal Church
Official site.
Evangelical Lutheran Church
Home page of the parent organization of this denomination of the Lutheran Church.
The Holy See
Official site of the Vatican.
Jesuits
Official website of the Society of Jesus, a Roman Catholic order.
Presbyterian Church (USA)
Official website for the PCUSA, the largest of the Presbyterian denominations.
Southern Baptist Convention
Official site.
United Methodist Church
Official website of the Methodist Church.

Sacred texts

Baha'i Reference Library
This primary source website offers important texts from the Baha'i faith.
Bible Gateway
Searchable online Bible with a number of different versions available.
Book of Mormon
Online full text from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints website.
Complete Jewish Bible
Searchable, browsable text of the Torah, prophets, and writings, with commentary by Rashi.
Internet Sacred Text Archive
Huge collection of public domain religious texts.

News and Current Events

The Atlantic
Offers long-form journalism and often discusses contentious topics in the Abrahamic faiths. Reach out to Ms. Otero for a copy of an article.
The Economist
Covers stories on religion with a focus on its intersection with politics, economics, and society. Reach out to Ms. Otero for a copy of an article.
FirstThings
Nonpartisan coverage of current news, from the Institute on Religion and Public Life, an interreligious research organization.
Huffpost Religion
Current news on many religions from the Huffington Post.
The New Yorker
In-depth profiles, investigative journalism, and essays that examine how religion intersects on variety of issues. Reach out to Ms. Otero for a copy of an article.
On Being
NPR radio broadcast, podcasts and website, with discussions of many social aspects of religious belief.
The Pluralism Project
Offers news articles and essays on the study of religious diversity and interfaith relations from Harvard University.
Religion & Ethics Newsweekly
Current religious news reporting from PBS.
Religion Dispatches
Current news " at the intersection of religion, politics and culture" from the Annenberg School at USC.
Religion News Service
Wide coverage of current news about religious topics.
Times Topics: Religion and Belief
Useful site for finding information about a variety of religions and cults. Click "Organizations" for Aum Shinrikyo, Branch Davidians, Heaven's Gate, etc.; click "Subjects" for mainstream religions.
WSJ Houses of Worship
Wall Street Journal opinion section that covers a wide range of topics related to religion, faith, and spirituality. Get login access from the Subscription Databases page.

Islam

Islam: Basic Articles of Faith
Overview of Islam, from the BBC.
The Shia-Sunni Divide
In-depth information and historical background on the two divisions of Islam, from the Council on Foreign Relations.
Wahhabi
An overview of the beliefs of Muslims who embrace the teachings of Abd Al-Wahhab.

Judaism

Anti Defamation League
Chabad.org
Large collection of information on Jewish belief and practice, developed as an educational tool.
Conservative Judaism in the United States
Information on conservative Judaism, from the Jewish Women's Archive.
Jewish Virtual Library
Background information and current news about Judaism and Israel.
Jewish Women's Archive: Research Tools
Biographies, oral histories, and a Jewish Women's Encyclopedia. Includes a large archive of primary sources.
Star-K Kosher Certification
Lots of information about the preparation of kosher food.
Union for Reform Judaism
News and information about the Jewish world from a Reform Judaism standpoint.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Information about the Holocaust, from the museum in Washington, D. C.
United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism
Information about conservative Judaism.
What Does Kosher Mean?
Information on kosher food from a kosher certification organization.

Finding Books on Religion in the Library

The 200s portion of the nonfiction collection contains most (but not all) of the library's books about religion. Books about individual religions are shelved together. You can browse that section, or try searching the library catalog using the name of the religion you are interested in

Books about particular religions are often placed on a cart for use during research projects. If books have been pulled, please do not take them home without asking a member of the library staff, as many students will need access to those books.

Subscription Databases

These databases will be useful for researching religions topics. Log in with your Menlo username and password.

Britannica Academic This link opens in a new window
- Why search here?
  Begin your research by reading authoritative tertiary sources like the ones found here.
- What’s included?
  In-depth overview articles, often with links to supporting primary source materials. Also includes a world atlas with statistical information on individual countries plus the ability to compare any two countries.
Oxford Reference This link opens in a new window
- This link opens in a new window
- Why search here?
  Look here for reference information of all types.
- What’s included?
  Dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other reference sources.
Religion and Philosophy Collection (EBSCO) This link opens in a new window
From EBSCO: extensive coverage of such topics as world religions, major denominations, biblical studies, and religious history.

Data and Statistics

Association of Religion Data Archives
Statistics, congregational membership data, country profiles, maps and timelines.
Religion & Public Life
News and surveys from the Pew Research Center.

Biblical commentaries

Babylonian Talmud
Full text of the Talmud.
Babylonian Talmud
Full text, from the Internet Sacred Text Archive.
New Edition of the Babylonian Talmud
A 1903 title available as a searchable e-book.
Rashi's Commentary on the Talmud
Commentaries from the 11th century rabbi.
Sample commentaries
Examples of a number of different commentaries on the Talmud.
The Tosafists
An explanation of the rabbis who wrote the Tosafot commentaries.

Other Related Websites

Alternative Considerations of Jonestown & Peoples Temple
Primary sources and historical analysis of the People's Temple and the events at Jonestown.
Buddhist Studies: The Spread of Buddhism
Learn about the history of Buddhism in specific countries.
Parliament of the World's Religions
Interfaith organization that promotes harmony among various spiritual communities.