COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT POLICY STATEMENT
RELIGIOUS STUDIES
Department: Collections Management
Written by: Agnes Haigh Widder
Date drafted: Jan. 31, 2006
Date revised:
Resources in religious studies serve the instructional needs of the Department of Religious Studies, which offers an undergraduate major, and a teaching minor for students majoring in Education. Certain portions of the collection support instruction and research in other departments and programs, e.g. history, medical humanities, literature, philosophy, art, music, Jewish studies, and Muslim studies.
This collection is most needed to serve the general information needs and reading interests of our University community, quite apart from any instructional or research programs on campus. The collection may also supplement those found in local church libraries.
From the Religious Studies departmental website: the academic study of religion seeks to describe and interpret the nature of religion and the variety of religious worldviews. In doing so, it draws on the disciplines and interdisciplinary methodologies of the human and social sciences. The study of religious worldviews approaches religion comparatively in a cross-cultural context and free from the biases of particular denominations and doctrines. Moreover, it tries to understand the multiple dimensions of religion: religious texts, myths, doctrines, and rituals; religion and ethics; religious institutions and religious experience. The study of religion explores changes in religious traditions over time and economic and intellectual contexts within which religions have unfolded. Students learn how to think and write about varieties of religious phenomena and experiences.
The collection emphasizes historical treatments relating mainly to the Christian West. The present religious worldviews focus of the Religious Studies department is comparatively new. Thus, non-Christian religious traditions are represented more sparsely in the collection (2 level) and began to be collected more recently.
We have entered a new period in which issues of faith, Christianity, and non-Christian religions, especially Islam, are of greater interest to many in our University community. The Religious Studies department, more than once slated for closure, is reviving itself; a number of new, young faculty members have been hired. The Islam/Judaism position is becoming two positions. The University now has Jewish studies and Muslim studies programs. We need to build up the collection on the non-Christian faiths while not reducing our efforts on Christianity. This will be a great challenge with the present financial resources for this collection area.
1. On campus branch of format collections, if any. N/A
2. Regional or network resources, if any
Students from Lansing Bible College, who pursue an individualized Ph.D. program awarded through M.S.U., make heavy use of specifically focused scriptural, exegetical, and pastoral collections at LBC and other private schools.
C. Relationships to Resources Treated in Other Policy Statements
Human medicine: medical humanities, collected by medical bibliographer in R-RZ
Philosophy: ethics, collected by philosophy bibliographer, B-BJ
History: history of churches; impacts of religion on history and society, collected by history and area studies bibliographers, gender studies bibliographer, political science bibliographer, classics bibliographer, BL-BX, D-DX, E, F, H-HX, J-JX
Art: aesthetics; religious themes as subjects, collected by art librarian, N-NX
Music: Church music, collected by music librarian, M-MT
Literature: representation of religion in literature; religious writers as literary authors, collected by literature bibliographer, British history bibliographer, medieval studies bibliographer, area studies bibliographers, P-PT
Judaism: collected by Jewish studies bibliographer, especially 19th century forward
A. Chronology
of the Subject: Emphases/Restrictions N/A
English is preferred. Some authors who serve as primary sources may be collected in their original languages. Some users of the Islamic materials prefer French language materials.
The geographic preference parallels that of the M.S.U. community’s geographic profile. Yet, the economic world of today is global and our study abroad programs go around the world. Consequently, we have a greater need to collect on non-Western religious traditions than we used to. The collection serves historical research especially for United Kingdom and Ireland, North America, France, and medieval Europe.
Electronic resources may be collected. Primary materials on microform are not collected.
We emphasize collection of recently published resources
Conspectus Call # ranges |
Subject |
Level |
Note |
BL 41
|
comparative religion
|
3a
|
|
BL 51-54
|
philosophy & psychology of religion
|
3a
|
|
BL 175-290
|
natural theology
|
2
|
|
BL 240-265
|
religion and science
|
2
|
|
BL 300-325
|
mythology, comparative mythology
|
2
|
|
BL 425-490
|
religious doctrines
|
2
|
|
BL 500-547
|
eschatology
|
2
|
|
BL 550-635
|
worship, cults
|
2
|
|
BL 625
|
mysticism
|
2
|
|
BL 660
|
anthropological study of religion
|
2
|
|
BL 685-2630
|
world religions and mythology
|
2
|
|
BL 700-820
|
classical religion and mythology
|
2
|
|
BL 1100-1270
|
Brahmanism, Hinduism
|
2
|
|
BL 2400-2490
|
African religions
|
3a
|
|
BL2420-2460
|
ancient Egyptian religion
|
2
|
|
BL 2670-2790
|
atheism and secularism
|
2
|
|
BM 1-960
|
Judaism
|
2
|
|
BM 1-65
|
Judaism – periodicals, etc.
|
3a
|
|
BM 10-518
|
Judaism – Midrash
|
1
|
|
BP 1-605
|
Islam
|
2
|
|
BP 300-395
|
Bahism
|
2
|
|
BP500-597
|
Theosophy, Anthroposophy
|
2
|
|
BQ
|
Buddhism
|
2
|
|
BR 1-1725
|
Christianity
|
2
|
|
BR 60-67
|
early Christian literature, Church
fathers
|
2
|
|
BR 140-1689
|
Christianity – church history
|
3a
|
|
BS
|
Bible
|
2
|
|
BS 11-115
|
Bible – early versions
|
1
|
|
BS 315-355
|
Bible -
non-European languages
|
1
|
|
BS 476-537
|
Bible – hermeneutics, exegetics,
commentaries, criticism, literature |
1
1 |
|
BT
|
doctrinal theology
|
2
|
|
BV
|
practical theology
|
2
|
|
BV 759-765
|
Church law
|
1
|
|
BV 800-873
|
sacraments
|
1
|
|
BV 900-1450
|
religious societies
|
1
|
|
BV 2000-3705
|
missions
|
1
|
but in Africa 3a
|
BV 3750-3790
|
evangelism
|
1
|
|
BX 1-9
|
ecumenical movement
|
2
|
|
BX 100-754
|
Eastern and Oriental Churches
|
2
|
|
BX 800-4924
|
Roman Catholic Church
|
3a
|
|
BX 1749-4924
|
Roman Catholic Church, dogmatics,
Church and state, government and organization, law, liturgy, shrines |
2
|
|
BX 4800-9999
|
Protestantism
|
3a
|
|
BX 6201-6495
|
Baptists and other sects
|
2
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
General interest materials, not related to research needs, are not preserved, but withdrawn when used up or outdated.
Duplicate copies not checked out in ten years may be withdrawn. Materials needing binding, rebinding, repair, conservation, or relabeling may be identified during weeding projects, by the bibliographer, or when returned from circulation, by circulation staff.