Best Bets for Starting Your Research in... :: Religious Studies::
Use databases to find articles on your topic. These databases are the best place to start.
- ATLA Religion Database
Collection of major religion and theology journals. Journals representing all major religious faiths, major denominations, and language groups are included.
Date coverage: 1949-present.
- Catholic Periodical and Literature Index
Iindexed citations to articles published in Roman Catholic periodicals, papal documents, church promulgations, and books about the Catholic faith that are authored by Catholics and/or produced by Catholic publishers. Contains more than 300,000 records covering Roman Catholic publications.
Date coverage: 1981-present.
- Humanities Full Text
Contains scholarly and general publications. 50% full text.
Date coverage: 1980-present.
- JSTOR
Full text archive of scholarly journals in various disciplines of the Arts & Sciences.
Date coverage: Varies - about 2001. Many journals are archived back to the first issue. JSTOR contains journals published up to five years ago.
Listen to a fun podcast "interview" with this database: iTunes RealPlayer
Tips: When searching databases, use AND, OR, and parentheses to focus your search.
The asterisk * symbol will search for all variations of a word. For example: christ* will search for christ, christian, christians and christianity. Using quotes will search for a phrase.
Combine synonyms with OR and put them inside parentheses, like this:
United States AND (islam OR muslims)
Here's another example using bapti* which will search baptist, baptists, baptism, baptize, baptizes:
(bapti*) AND (gospel OR "new testament")
Already have the citation? Find an article with citation linker!
Did you know...Databases are basically just search engines for articles on specific subjects. |
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Find books using the library catalog. Browse these subjects to get general information on your topic.
- Bible
- Catholic Church
- Islam
- Judaism
- Women and religion
Search the library catalog! Find books, media materials, and more. Other searches:
Browse | Advanced Search Tips: When searching the library catalog with keywords, use the dollar sign ($) to search for a word and all of its variations.
For example: Judai$ will search for Judaism and Judaic at the same time.
Did you know...- WorldCat is a catalog of thousands of libraries around the world!
- If a book isn't in the Fairfield U. catalog, search WorldCat and request the book from another library. Just click on the Interlibrary Loan button.
- You can search ReQuest to search just the libraries in Connecticut.
- Contact John Cayer, Interlibrary Services, with questions.
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Finding sacred texts' sources:
- King James Version of the Holy Bible- Location:
BS185 1999 .N48 and online
- The Catholic Study Bible - Location: Ref BS192.3 .A1 2006 .N49
- Hebrew Bible, O.T. -
Location: Ref BS1223 1986
- Koran (Qur'an) - Location: Ref
BP109 2005
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Reference tools such as dictionaries and encyclopedias are good places to start your research because they provide an overview of the topic as well as keywords, dates, and facts.
Dictionaries, Encyclopedias, and Handbooks
- Catholic Encyclopedia Online
- Encyclopedia of African and African American Religions -Location: Ref. BL2462.5 .E53 2001
- Encyclopedia of American Catholic History -Location: Ref. BX 1406.2.E53 1997
- Encyclopedia of American religions, religious creeds -Location: Ref. BT990.E58 1988
- Encyclopedia of Buddhism- Location: Ref. BQ128 .E62 2004
- Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim world-Location: Ref. BP40.E525 2004
- Encyclopaedia Judaica (electronic resource)
- Encyclopedia of saints - Location:
Ref. BX4655.8.G85 2001
- Encyclopedia of science and religion -Location: Ref. BL240.3.E43 2003
- Historical dictionary of Hinduism -Location: Ref. 1105.S85 1997
- Historical Dictionary of Taoism -Location: Ref. BL1923 .P37 1998
- Jewish Encyclopedia online
- Religions of the world: a comprehensive encyclopedia of beliefs and practices
-Location:Ref. BL80.3.R45 2002
Tips: Try looking at the bibliography at the end of the entry for a list of other sources such as relevant journal articles and books.
When you have found books on your topic, look at the books on the shelf nearby to see if they are related to your topic.
Did you know...
Wikipedia can be edited by anyone, so make sure you use another source to confirm the information you find there. |
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These web sites have been evaluated by librarians (that's a good thing) for your use in an academic setting.
Did you know...
There are billions of web pages and Google only finds a fraction of them (about 15%). The rest is held in what's called the "Invisible Web", which is made up of dynamically generated information, password protected sites, and database-driven sites!
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Use these e-learning modules to get quick answers!
Still have questions?
Contact your Religious Studies Librarian, Jackie Kremer @
- jkremer@mail.fairfield.edu or
- call her at (203) 254-4000 ext. 2587 or
- IM her at fairfieldjack at AIM |
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Get help 24/7! Via Web chat at http://www.fairfield.edu/lib_askalibrarian.html
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