Research Guides: Religious Studies: Finding More Information

This page lists digital resources and websites relating to major religious resources, as well religion or denomination specific resources.

Search for Specific Words or Phrases within Religious Texts

The Bible Gateway
Allows you to search any of seven different Christian Bibles: New International Version (NIV); New American Standard Bible (NASB); Revised Standard Version (RSV); King James Version (KJV); American Standard Version (ASV); Darby Translation (Darby), and Young's Literal Translation (YLT). Each bible can be searched in any of seven languages: English, German, Swedish, Latin, French, Spanish or Tagalog.
Search the electronic text of The Holy Qur'an / Quaran / Koran
The electronic text of M.H. Shakir's translation of the The Holy Quar'an published in 1983 is provided by the Humanities Text Initiative, on the Univeristy of Michigan campus, in Ann Arbor, MI.
Search the text of The Book of Mormon
The electronic text of the Book of Mormon is provided by the Humanities Text Initiative, on the Univeristy of Michigan campus, in Ann Arbor, MI.

Major Religious Resources

Websites on Religion
This Atla (American Theological Library Association) online guide is a growing, selective, annotated collection of web resources for the study of religion.
Religion-Online
More than 6,000 articles and chapters. Topics include Old and New Testament, Theology, Ethics, History and Sociology of Religion, Communication and Cultural Studies, Pastoral Care, Counseling, Homiletics, Worship, Missions and Religious Education. Religion-Online is managed and monitored by Claremont School of Theology as a public service to scholars all over the world.
Internet Sacred Text Archive
This site is a freely available archive of electronic texts about religion, mythology, legends and folklore, and occult and esoteric topics. Texts are presented in English translation and, where possible, in the original language.

This site has no particular agenda other than promoting religious tolerance and scholarship. Views expressed at this site are solely those of specific authors, and are not endorsed by sacred-texts. Sacred-texts is not sponsored by any religious group or organzation.
Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA)
The Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) strives to democratize access to the best data on religion. Founded as the American Religion Data Archive in 1997 and going online in 1998, the initial archive was targeted at researchers interested in American religion. The targeted audience and the data collection have both greatly expanded since 1998, now including American and international collections and developing features for educators, journalists, religious congregations, and researchers. Data included in the ARDA are submitted by the foremost religion scholars and research centers in the world.

Religion Specific and Denomination Specific Resources

China Historical Christian Database (CHCD)
This database quantifies and visualizes the place of Christianity in modern China (1550-1950). It provides users the tools to discover where every Christian church, school, hospital, orphanage, publishing house, and the like were located in China, and it documents who worked inside those buildings, both foreign and Chinese.
Early Christian Writings
"Early Christian Writings is the most complete collection of documents from the first two centuries with translations and commentary. Includes the New Testament, Apocrypha, Gnostics, and Church Fathers."
Project Wittenburg
"Project Wittenberg is home to works by and about Martin Luther and other Lutherans. Here you will find all manner of texts from short quotations to commentaries, hymns to statements of faith, theological treatises to biographies, and links to other places where words and images from the history of Lutheranism live." Maintained by the Rev. Bob Smith.

This page lists Salem-based and local religious associations and resources.

Westar Institute
Founded in 1986, Westar Institute is a member-supported, non-profit research and educational institute dedicated to advancing religious literacy. Westar is not affiliated with any religious institution and does not advocate a particular theological point of view. Westar’s headquarters is on the campus of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon.
Oregon-Idaho United Methodist Church Archives
Its mission is to collect, preserve, and make accessible the historically significant records of the Oregon-Idaho United Methodist Church annual conference and its agencies, including data relating to the origin and history of the conference and its antecedents, and much more.
Brigittine Monks Order of The Most Holy Savior
The Order of The Most Holy Savior, popularly known as Brigittine, was founded in the year 1370 by St. Birgitta of Sweden to give praise and honor to God. The Brigittine Monks existed from the fourteenth to the middle of the nineteenth century, when they were dispersed, largely due to the European wars. In 1976 a new branch of the Brigittine Monks established this monastery in Amity, Oregon.
Dasmesh Darbar Sikh Temple
Sikhism is one of the youngest world religion. It is a strictly monotheistic faith, preaching the existence of only one God, and teaching universally acceptable ideals of honesty, compassion, humility, piety, social commitment, and above all tolerance for other religions.
Mount Angel Abbey Library
The library strives to serve the scholarly and recreational needs of its patrons for reading, listening and visual material in many areas of human culture, especially theology, language and literature, philosophy and the arts, as well as social science and natural history.
Temple Beth Sholom (Reconstructionist)
As an affiliate of the Jewish Reconstructionist Federation, Temple Beth Sholom facilitates the search for meaning in Jewish heritage through the discovery and observance of Jewish values and practices within a contemporary setting. (Pages load slowly)
Wat Buddha Oregon
Wat Buddha Oregon is situated on 2.5 wooded slope acres in Turner, a little town on the out skirts of Salem. The Wat or temple was built on February 25, 1999. It was erected from funds donated by Buddhists from all over Oregon and nearby States.

This page lists digital resources and websites relating to major religious associations.

American Academy of Religion
In a world where religion plays so central a role in social, political, and economic events, as well as in the lives of communities and individuals, there is a critical need for ongoing reflection upon and understanding of religious traditions, issues, questions, and values. The American Academy of Religion's mission is to promote such reflection through excellence in scholarship and teaching in the field of religion.
Society of Biblical Literature
The Society of Biblical Literature is the oldest and largest international scholarly membership organization in the field of biblical studies. Founded in 1880, the Society has grown to over 8,500 international members including teachers, students, religious leaders and individuals from all walks of life who share a mutual interest in the critical investigation of the Bible.
American Schools of Oriental Research
The American Schools of Oriental Research (ASOR) is a non-profit organization that supports and encourages the study of the peoples and cultures of the Near East, from the earliest times to the present. ASOR is apolitical and has no religious affiliation. We were founded in 1900 by twenty one institutions—including Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and Columbia. Over a century later, ASOR has more than 90 consortium institutions, including universities, seminaries, museums, foundations, and libraries.
Pacific Northwest Region of the AAR/SBL
Since it’s inception in 1971, one of the most pleasant and prized features of our region is a western persona that is warm and friendly, informal and welcoming to all. Currently eleven sections are active: Archaeology of the Ancient Near East, Arts and Religion, Asian and Comparative Studies, Hebrew Bible, History of Christianity/North American Religions, New Testament and Hellenistic Religions, Religion and Society, Study of Islam, Theology and Philosophy of Religion, Women and Religion, Special Topics: Mormon Studies.

Religious Studies

Search for Specific Words or Phrases within Religious Texts

Willamette University Libraries