Research Guides: Religious Studies: A Guide to Research

Primary Sources
Learn what primary sources are and how to find them.
Citation Help
Get help using APA, MLA, IEEE, and Chicago styles, and citing data.
Bridwell Library
Bridwell Library is the theological library at SMU. Many of our materials related to religion are located there.
Bridwell Library Guides
Take a look at Bridwell Library's research guides if you are doing research on a religious topic.

ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials PLUS
ATLA is the premier index for searching any topic relating to religion. The content of this database includes: religion and culture; theology, philosophy and ethics; Christian denominations; church history, missions, and ecumenism; world religions and religious studies; bible, archaeology and antiquities; and more.
Religion & Philosophy Collection
Covers such topics as world religions, major denominations, biblical studies, religious history, epistemology, political philosophy, philosophy of language, moral philosophy and the history of philosophy. Full text information in this database dates as far back as 1975.

Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA)
Provides data on churches and church membership, religious professionals, and religious groups (individuals, congregations, and denominations). Includes interactive map and membership reports of religious congregations, adherents, and rates of adherence, searchable by state, county, and metropolitan area. Also provides the 2004 General Social Survey, the National Congregational Study, and other studies.

Philosopher's Index
This is the principal resource philosophical research. Use this index to find ways of being spiritual ; bible and ethics; philosophy of religion; Christian theology; Sikhism or Confucianism.
APA PsycINFO
This index to psychological literature is fairly broad in scope and you will find it helpful for researching: understanding the self: east and west; ways of being religious; human meaning and value in personal life; religion and the Holocaust; Jews and Christians in Germany.

Contact:

lfuller@smu.edu
214-768-7379

BrillOnline Reference Works
A collection of reference works covering subjects including Biblical Studies, Classical Studies, History, Language and Linguistics, Law, Middle East and Islamic Studies, and Religious Studies.

World Religions Reference Library
Comprehensive survey of the origins, developments, beliefs and distribution of the world's religions. Covers the history, traditions and worldviews of dominant and less prominent religions and their sects and offshoots.
Encyclopedia of Religion
More than 3,000 entries that present a cross-cultural approach that emphasizes religion's role within everyday life and as a unique experience from culture to culture.