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Collection Development for Theological EducationAccredited theological schools may be non- orinterdenominational, like the Wake Forest University Divinity School or the Union TheologicalSeminary in New York City, or they may havestated denominational or confessional affiliationslike the Jesuit School of Theology at Santa ClaraUniversity in California or the Princeton Theological Seminary, a school of the PresbyterianChurch (USA). Historically, candidates goingon to seek ordination in a specific church attendan educational institution formally or informallyaffiliated with that church (Weber, 2008). Accordingly, theological library collections will verylikely reflect and mirror a school’s denominationalor confessional affiliation. Theological libraries and collections are found within theologicalschools that are academic units or faculties withinuniversities or colleges, like those at Vanderbilt,Duke, Oxford, and Cambridge, or they can bedepartments within large or small stand-alonetheological schools like the Vancouver Schoolof Theology, the Graduate Theological Union inBerkeley, California, or the Luther Seminary inSt. Paul, Minnesota. Theological collections canalso be found in central campus libraries. Collections supporting the University of ChicagoDivinity School, for example, are housed in theuniversity’s graduate research library, along withother collections in the humanities and social sciences. Some large theological organizations likethe American Bible Society or the World Councilof Churches also have dedicated libraries, and theLibrary of Congress and the British Library haveimportant collections of theological materials,including rare and special collections.The basic graduate professional degree accredited by the ATS leading to ordination andministry is the Master of Divinity (MDiv) degree.Other basic degrees recognized by the ATS are theMaster in Religious Education, Master in ChurchMusic, Master of Specialized Ministry, and Masterin Pastoral Studies (Association of TheologicalSchools, 2007). Theological schools may also114offer graduate degrees in theological studies forstudents not seeking ordination or students whowant to teach in theological schools or universities. Advanced degrees in theology, for which theMDiv degree is often required, are the Doctorof Ministry, Doctor of Education, and Doctor ofChurch Music.Theology’s Relationshipto Religious StudiesWhat is the difference between theology and thestudy of religion? Scrimgeour (1985) contendsthat:The scholar working in a department of religion isprimarily concerned with description and analysis. Methodically, he or she is an agnostic. Thetheologian, on the other hand, whether workingin a university or a seminary, is a self-consciousrepresentative of a particular religious tradition.the theologian’s primary task is to interpret that[particular religious] legacy to society at large,the academy, and the churches. The theologian inthe seminary and divinity school environment isactively involved in the education of persons forministry. the essence of religion is found in itsconcern with transcendence, the numinous, theOther, the sacred. (p. 99)Religious studies can also be viewed as a socialscience, one that is allied to anthropology, sociology, and psychology and that seeks to understandhumanity’s shared religious experience, as wellas how religions and faiths function and operateas social organizations (Religion, 2009). Parratt(1996) believes that in the academy the study andteaching of theology, as compared to religiousstudies, “will be limited to those who believe inGod in some way.Theology, then, demands somekind of personal commitment over and above thenormal kind of commitment one would expect ofany scholar in any discipline” (p. 1).

Collection Development for Theological EducationTHE LITERATURE OF THEOLOGYThe scope of theological literature can be overwhelming given its history and diversity. Theoldest work of theological literature is the OldTestament or the Tanakh in Hebrew, the earliestversion of which is found in the Dead Sea Scrollswritten between circa 150 BC and AD 50 (DeadSea Scrolls, 2006).For many decades, collection developmentin theology, as in other disciplines and professional programs, was focused on the acquisitionof printed books and journals. Many libraries alsocollected materials on microfilm and microficheand later on computer discs and CD ROMs.Today, almost all scholarly indexes and journalsare published online or have some kind of onlinepresence, and the number of electronic booksbeing made available is growing every year, asare the number of printed books. This chapter isintended to give collection development librarians some guidance in identifying importanttitles, publishers, genres, and resources to use inbuilding collections at theological libraries. It isnot exhaustive, and librarians are encouraged tobecome familiar with the literature through discussions with colleagues and faculty, publishers’catalogs and websites, professional associations,and their own interactions with their library’stheological collections. Electronic resources arehighlighted along with printed ones, and, as inany other discipline, the librarian must use his orher judgment when evaluating specific resourcesin terms of projected use in concert with price,demand, quality, and relevance.Theological literature can be conceived ofusing several categories defined by material typeincluding: sacred and primary source literature iscomposed of the Hebrew and Christian Bibles (theOld and New Testaments) as well as the works ofearly theologians and church fathers like Jerome,Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin, MartinLuther, and others, all of whose works are important for understanding the history of Christianityand the development of the branches of the Christian faith; reference works like encyclopedias,dictionaries, atlases, and commentaries; monographs including critical interpretations, textualcriticisms, histories, biographies, and analysesof scripture, as well as popular devotional andinspirational texts and how-to manuals; indexesand databases for finding journal articles, essays,and reviews; and journals as vehicles for understanding current scholarship within the variousbranches of theology and contemporary eventswithin the church.Sacred and PrimarySource LiteratureThe Bible, made up of the Old and New Testaments, is the foundation text of the Christian faithand the key to the study, understanding, and application of Christianity and Christian theology.Theological libraries’ reference collections shouldinclude a number of versions and translations in order to reflect the history, use, interpretation, study,and composition of the Bible and the formationof the Biblical canon by the Catholic, Protestant,and Orthodox branches of the Christian church.A theological library should have, at a minimum,copies of the King James Version (also known asthe Authorized Version), the American StandardVersion, the New International Version, the DouayRheims Version, the Revised Standard Version,the New English Bible, the Complete HebrewBible, the Jerusalem and New Jerusalem Bibles,the Good News Bible, the New American Bible,the Yale Anchor Bible, the New Revised StandardVersion, and the Latin Vulgate.Source literature includes canonical works bythe great theologians of the early church, as well asthe founders of the branches of the Protestant andReformed churches. Although these works are notheld to be divine or divinely inspired in the sameway as the Old and New Testaments, their authors,like Jerome, Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, MartinLuther, John Calvin, and Thomas Cranmer helped115

Collection Development for Theological Educationto shape the theology, identity, and philosophy ofthe Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant churches.At the same time, they created distinct intellectualtraditions and schools of thought that are centralto the way scholars study and teach theology inthe twenty-first century.Given the technical and highly specialized natureof theological curricula, students require specialized reference tools and resources to help theminterpret and understand the Bible and Scripture,theological concepts, ancient languages, andchurch policy and doctrine.Another comprehensive tool for Biblical studiesis Oxford Biblical Studies Online. It includesseveral electronic versions and translations of theBible, along with images and maps, parallel texts,dictionaries, and critical guides to Biblical themesand topics. Cambridge University Press has madea number of essay collections on specific topicsavailable online through its Cambridge Companions Online series. A subset within the series,“Cambridge Companions to Philosophy, Religion,and Culture” includes over 150 individual onlineCompanions to figures and topics like Anselm,Aquinas, Augustine, Biblical interpretation, Christian doctrine, evangelical and feminist theology,the Gospels, and liberation theology.Bible Dictionaries and EncyclopediasBible CommentariesBible dictionaries contain alphabetically arrangedarticles about persons, events, places, concepts,and institutions mentioned in the Bible. Bibleencyclopedias contain longer, more comprehensive entries. The five volume New InterpretersDictionary of the Bible (Abingdon) is an important recently completed reference work. It or thepopular Anchor Bible Dictionary (Doubleday)may function as a library’s standard Biblicalreference dictionary. The Oxford Companion tothe Bible (Oxford), the Catholic Bible Dictionary(Doubleday), Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible(Eerdmans), and the Cambridge Companion tothe Bible (Cambridge) are other important singlevolume print tools. Oxford University Press offersa number of comprehensive digital dictionariesand encyclopedias, through its Oxford ReferenceOnline platform. Here researchers can cross searchthe electronic versions of the Oxford Dictionaryof the Bible (Oxford), the electronic version of theOxford Companion to the Bible, and the OxfordGuide to People and Places of the Bible (Oxford),as well as resources like the Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (Oxford), ConciseCompanion to the Jewish Religion (Oxford), andOxford Encyclopedia of the Reformation (Oxford).Bible commentaries provide chapter-by-chapterand verse-by-verse explanation and interpretationof the Old and New Testaments arranged in thesame order as the books, chapters, and verses ofthe Bible. Some commentaries consider the entire Bible, while others are concerned only withone book of the Old or New Testaments. Commentaries are essential for Biblical exegesis, theexplanation and interpretation of a sacred text.Ascough (2000) defines exegesis as a “systematicprocess by which a person arrives at a reasonableand coherent sense of the meaning and messageof a biblical passage” (para. 1). Exegesis mayalso seek to explain and analyze intent, apply themeaning to a contemporary situation or event,or use linguistic, historical, and literary methodsto interpret the text. As with the Bible, a libraryshould collect a variety of commentaries to reflectthe various denominational and confessionalperspectives within Christianity. Depending onexpected use and other factors, they may be partof a library’s circulating collections. Librariansshould also bear in mind that the author or authorsof a commentary will interpret scripture withinthe frame of his, her, or their faith or educationalbackground, viewpoint, and theological perspec-Reference Works116

Collection Development for Theological Educationtive. Commentaries should be used in concertwith the appropriate Bible edition or translationso that a researcher seeking to learn about a bookor passage within the New International VersionBible, for example, uses a New InternationalVersion commentary. Many commentaries arepublished within series, including the Anchor YaleBible Commentaries series (Yale), CambridgeNew Testament Theology Series (Cambridge),Abingdon Old and New Testament Commentaries,and Fortress Press’ Hermeneia series.Language DictionariesTheological students are expected to gain an understanding of one or more of the ancient Biblicallanguages of Hebrew, Latin, and Greek throughclasses that are part the theological curriculum.Some programs may also recommend readingknowledge of a modern European language likeGerman, especially since many theological titlesare published in that language. Oxford Reference Online provides electronic access to severalelectronic bilingual language dictionaries, butlibrarians may wish to purchase print editions ofimportant titles, especially those with a theologicalfocus. Liddell and Scott’s A Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford) is the standard resource for AncientGreek and the University of Chicago Libraryhas made Woodhouse’s English-Greek Dictionary (Oxford), another important work, availableonline for free (http://www.lib.uchicago.edu/efts/Woodhouse/). New Testament Greek (also knownas Koine Greek) dictionaries and lexicons includeDanker’s Concise Greek-English Lexicon of theNew Testament (Chicago) and Bauer, Arndt, andGingrich’s A Greek-English Lexicon of New Testament (Chicago). Important Latin dictionariesinclude the Oxford Latin Dictionary (Oxford) andChambers Murray Latin-English Dictionary (alsoknown as “Smith and Lockwood,” J. Murray).Muller’s Dictionary of Latin and Greek Theo-logical Terms: Drawn Principally from ProtestantScholastic Theology (Baker House Books) wouldbe useful for schools affiliated with a branch of theProtestant church, while Stelten’s Dictionary ofEcclesiastical Latin (Hendrickson, 1995) is usefulfor Medieval Latin word definitions, along withthe use of Latin in liturgy, teaching, and writingin the postclassical period.A theological library may also consider procuring one or more German language dictionaries,as well as German theological dictionaries likeModern Theological German: A Reader andDictionary (Baker Books) and Lexikon der theologischen Werke (Kroner).Theological students require some knowledge of Biblical Hebrew. The Oxford HebrewDictionary (Oxford) is a standard resource, as isthe Brown, Driver, Briggs Hebrew and EnglishLexicon (Hendrickson, 1996). Theologically focused resources include Brown’s A Hebrew andEnglish Lexicon of the Old Testament (ClarendonPress), the Brill Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon ofthe Old Testament (Brill), as well as the Hebrewand Aramaic Dictionary of the Old Testament(de Gruyter).Biblical AtlasesBiblical atlases are important for understandingthe geography and geographic history of theBible and the early church. They give importantinformation about how a country, town, city, orregion was shaped, populated, administered, andorganized, and many include essays, commentaries, charts, and other illustrations. Several atlasesare available online through Oxford Biblical Studies Online, such as the electronic version of theOxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the NearEast (Oxford). Print sources such as the OxfordBible Atlas (Oxford), the Macmillan Bible Atlas(Macmillan), and the New Moody Atlas of theBible (Moody) may also prove useful.117

Collection Development for Theological EducationConcordancesConcordances identify instances where a word orphrase has been used in the Bible. Many concordances give etymologies along with commentariesand critical interpretation. Print concordanceshave been largely superseded by electronic versions, including the New American Bible ConciseConcordance (Oxford) and Concise Concordanceto the New Standard Revised Version (Oxford),both of which are part of Oxford Biblical StudiesOnline, as well as by any number of free Web-basedconcordances and computer indexing softwarelike BibleWorks (BibleWorks, LLC). Librarieslooking to build a strong core reference collection could consider adding one or more recentlypublished concordances such as Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Hendrickson Publishers), the Analytical Concordance to the NewRevised Standard Version of the New Testament(Eerdmans), or the New Standard Revised VersionExhaustive Concordance (Nelson). As with Biblical commentaries, each version and translationof the Bible has its own concordance, such thatstudents using the New Jerusalem Bible shoulduse a New Jerusalem Concordance.Manuals, Handbooks, andGeneral ReferenceThis category of reference work includes textsthat treat liturgy and worship, liturgical music,and general theological reference, including theBook of Common Prayer in its various internationaleditions, the United Church of Christ’s Book ofWorship (the Church), the Roman Missal (UnitedStates Conference of Catholic Bishops), the Lutheran Book of Worship (Augsberg Fortress), andany other local or national publications such asthe Anglican Church of Canada’s Book of Alternative Services (the Church). With regard to churchmusic, librarians may decide to collect thesekinds of resources as appropriate and in concertwith any campus or institutional music libraries.118General reference works are also important, including dictionaries and guides to theology andtheological topics like the print and online versionsof Catholic Encyclopedia (Encyclopedia Press),the New Westminster Dictionary of ChristianSpirituality (Westminster-John Knox), Dictionaryof Historical Theology (Eerdmans), New SCMDictionary of Liturgy and Worship (SCM), An Ato Z of Feminist Theology (Sheffield AcademicPress), and the Historical Dictionary of Methodism (Scarecrow Press). Cambridge UniversityPress’ Companions series includes many titlesthat would fall into this general and very usefulreference category.MonographsS. L. Peterson (1980), a former librarian of the YaleDivinity School library, writes that “Theology isunusual amongst the humanistic disciplines in thatit produces both a highly technical and learnedbody of literature as well as a much larger body ofsemi-popular and popular literature which plays animportant role in the life of religious people” (p.153). A theological library’s collection can includefour broad types of monograph: critical interpretative works that attempt to illuminate a specificaspect of theology, scripture, or doctrine; histories,including biographies, church histories, and thehistory of Christian thought, philosophy, practice,and worship; practical works on pastoral ministryor parish and congregation administration; andpopular devotional, inspirational, or meditativeworks written for a broad, non-specialist audienceand those that discuss one or more contemporaryissues or themes.Many university presses have active theological publishing programs and publish criticalworks on theological topics, interpretive worksby or about modern theologians, and histories andbiographies (e.g., Oxford, Cambridge, Baylor,Chicago, Catholic University of America, NotreDame, and Georgetown). Non-university scholarlypublishers that produce theological monographs

Collection Development for Theological Educationinclude Ashgate, Peter Lang, Brill, and Brepols. Anumber of presses produce monographic series likethe University of Toronto Press’ Erasmus Studiesand Lonergan Series, and Wiley’s Directions inModern Theology Series. In addition to collectingtexts written by early theologians and doctors ofthe church, collection development librarians needto ensure that their collections include works bykey figures in the history of modern theology likeKant, Hegel, Barth, and Bonhoeffer.Theological students also require texts to helpthem learn and understand the practical aspects oftheir profession and vocation including pastoralministry, leadership, and management. Clergymenand women are expected to know how to manage funds and staff, deal with advisory boards,committees, and volunteers, administer churchbuildings, and have the skills to lead, inspire,and counsel the people they have been called toserve. This is a set of skills that students acquirethrough their courses and in internships andplacements; however, they need their libraries tocollect practical guidebooks, manuals, and texts inorder to help their process of learning and study.Denominational presses publish both critical andinvestigative theological texts, along with practicalguidebooks and handbooks for clergy and thoseactive in pastoral work. Active and importantpublishers in this field are Abingdon, Fortress,Eerdmans, Westminster John Knox, InterVarsityPress (IVP), the Society for Promoting ChristianKnowledge, Brazos, Orbis, SCM, and Albans.The proportion of critical monographs collected incomparison to practical texts or those that focus onaspects of pastoral work will need to be balancedagainst the library’s budget, the curriculum that thelibrary supports, as well as faculty research interests and any school-sponsored projects within thecommunity. Many publishers of practical worksare denominationally affiliated, which should bekept in mind when choosing one title over another.Devotional and inspirational books also havea place in a theological library’s collection. Thesepopular works are often concerned with contem-porary issues facing Christians or the church ordiscuss a particular aspect of Christian faith orpractice. They are almost always written with anon-academic audience in mind and can oftenbe biased towards one branch of the Christianchurch or ideology, but they capture contemporary Christian thought and practice, and revealcontemporary attitudes towards important socialquestions. Librarians may be loath to add thesekinds of mass-marketed

theology, the study of the Bible as a way to un-derstand and comprehend God and His revelations through the prophets and the evangelists; histori-cal theology, which applies historical methods to questions about belief, doctrine, and practice; and philosophical theology, which attempts to bring theology into dialogue with other branches