LibGuides: Comparative World Religions : Online Resources

Research on Religion

Internet Sacred Texts Archive
The Internet Sacred Text Archive (ISTA) is a Santa Cruz, California based website dedicated to the preservation of electronic public domain texts, specifically those with significant cultural value. Works which fall into this category range from religious texts such as the Bible, the Qur'an, the Avestas, the I Ching, or the Vedas, to the classical literature of Virgil, Plato, or Sophocles, and on to the more contemporary works of Shakespeare, or the Brothers Grimm. In addition, ISTA compiles texts of Native American religion, mythology and folklore, and lists historical texts and ethnographic accounts by culture group.[2] These texts were written from oral tradition by respected "ethnographers who were known for their careful and respectful approach to the people they studied."
Ishwar
Sacred texts (original language and English translation): Bahai, Buddhism, Christianity, Confucianism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto, Sikhism, Taoism, and Zoroastrianism.
World Scripture: A Comparative Anthology of Sacred Texts
Contains over 4,000 scriptural passages from 268 sacred texts and 55 oral traditions.
Scrolls from the Dead Sea from the Library of Congress
The exhibition Scrolls From the Dead Sea: The Ancient Library of Qumran and Modern Scholarship brings before the American people a selection from the scrolls which have been the subject of intense public interest. Over the years questions have been raised about the scrolls' authenticity, about the people who hid them away during the period in which they lived, about the secrets the scrolls might reveal, and about the intentions of the scrolls' custodians in restricting access. The Library's exhibition describes the historical context of the scrolls and the Qumran community from whence they may have originated; it also relates the story of their discovery 2,000 years later. In addition, the exhibition encourages a better understanding of the challenges and complexities connected with scroll research.

Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA)
ARDA consists of compilations of quantitative and geographic data on religions worldwide, including Christian denominations and congregations in the United States. Reports and maps are available for each country, as well as for US states and localities; links, lists of sources, and updates are included.
BBC World Service Guide to Religions and Beliefs of the World
Concise, objective descriptions of beliefs and practices of followers of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Sikhism. No longer updated.
Bya-Ra: a Tibetan Research Database
Catholic Encyclopedia
Full text of the 1914 edition of the Catholic Encyclopedia; its entries are often of considerable historical value.
Christian Classics Ethereal Library
An extensive and frequently consulted collection of digital texts of public-domain books on Christianity, compiled at Calvin College with the aid of a large group of volunteers.
Corpus Scriptorum Latinorum
A digital library compiling links to Latin texts available online, from the earliest sources through the 18th century AD; part of the Forum Romanum Web project.
Digital South Asia Library
Reference and research materials, including texts, images, maps, & statistical data, with bibliographies, indexes, and links to further resources. A major international collaborative project of numerous research institutions in the UK, US, and South Asia.
Friends of the Western Buddhist Order
A site containing introductory articles on Buddhism, as well as an international list of contacts. FWBO describes itself as "an international network dedicated to communicating Buddhist truths in ways appropriate to the modern world."
International Religious Freedom Report
The annual Report to Congress on International Religious Freedom, also known as the International Religious Freedom Report, describes the status of religious freedom, government policies violating religious belief and practices of groups, religious denominations and individuals, and U.S. policies promoting religious freedom.
Internet Islamic History Sourcebook
A compilation of public-domain and copy-permitted historical texts, arranged by period and theme, edited by Dr. Paul Halsall. This resource also includes links to a number of other relevant Web sites and digital maps.
Islam and Islamic Studies Resources
A varied, balanced, and award-winning guide to Web resources for the study of Islam, the Islamic world, and Arabic; compiled by Dr. Alan Godlas of the University of Georgia.
Jainism: Jain Principles, Tradition and Practices
While primarily a portal with organized links to other sites on Jainism, this site (maintained at Colorado State University) provides an historical outline and direct links to images.
Middle East Studies Internet Resources
Middle East Studies covers all disciplines in the study of human societies, past and present, in the following countries: Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, and Egypt, the occupied territories of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Iran, Afghanistan, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
Multilingual Bible
A site providing searchable texts of Bible versions, facilitating comparisons among the King James English, Latin Vulgate, Luther German, and Louis Segond French translations.
Theoi Project : Guide to Greek Mythology
"Comprehensive guide to the Gods (Theoi), Spirits (Daimones) and Monsters (Theres) of ancient Greek mythology and religion." Includes family trees and maps relating to the mythology, a gallery of images from Greek and Roman art, and a bibliography.
Tibetan & Himalayan Digital Library
The Tibetan and Himalayan Library (THL) is a publisher of websites, information services, and networking facilities relating to the Tibetan plateau and southern Himalayan regions. THL promotes the integration of knowledge and community across the divides of academic disciplines, the historical and the contemporary, the religious and the secular, the global and the local.