Journals

Christianity and Literature

Founded in 1950 and published by Johns Hopkins University Press, Christianity and Literature includes scholarly articles, book reviews, and original poetry. Cir. 1500.

Religion & Literature

Founded in the 1970s and housed at the University of Notre Dame, Religion & Literature explores the relations between the religious impulse and the literary forms of any era, place, or language. Cir. 500.

Literature and Belief

Founded in 1980, Literature and Belief addresses literature, critical theory, cultural dynamics, and faith. Cir. 400.

More Journals

Literature and Theology

Founded in 1986, Literature and Theology: An International Journal of Religion, Theory, and Culture is published quarterly by Oxford University Press. It offers a critical non-confessional forum for the exploration of questions pertinent to literary study and theology, broadly understood.

Religion and Literature Collection

A curated collection of articles drawn from Oxford University Press journals such as the Journal of Islamic Studies, the Journal of Hindu Studies, the Journal of the American Academy of Religion, and Modern Judaism.

Journal for the Study of Christian Culture

Founded in 1999, this journal focuses on literary studies and is published in both Chinese and English by Renmin University of China Press. Cir. 500.

Societies

The American Religion and Literature Society

Founded in 1997, ARLS meets annually at the American Literature Association convention and focuses on U.S. religion and literature.

International Society for Religion, Literature, and Culture

Begun in 1980 but formalized in 2000, ISRLC is based in the United Kingdom and has close ties to the journal Literature and Theology. It holds conferences and connects to related groups in Europe, Asia, Australia, South Africa, and North America.

Christianity and Literature Study Group

Founded in 1988, CLSG is a Canadian scholarly organization that holds an annual conference.

More Organizations

Societies in England, Germany, Korea, Norway, Scotland, the United States, and other nations.

The Conference on Christianity and Literature

Established in 1956, CCL sponsors sessions at the Modern Language Association Convention (U.S.), organizes conferences, presents annual awards, and publishes the journal Christianity and Literature.

The MLA Forum on Religion and Literature

Begun in 1974 and renamed in 1997, this forum sponsors panels at the annual convention of the Modern Language Association (U.S.), with proposals for papers and panels open to MLA members.

Scholars of Literature and Religion (SOLAR) Network

Housed with the Rivendell Center for Theology and the Arts at Yale University, the SOLAR network aims to connect rising post-graduate students with scholars and to foster collaboration between scholars.

Theory

Literary Theory

Contemporary theorists addressing religion.

Frameworks and Methodologies

Ways of conceptualizing religion and literature. Methodologies for the reading of religion and literature. Theory of the intellectual study of religion. Drawn from literary studies, anthropology, history, psychology, religious studies, and sociology.

Theology

Theologies of language, narrative, poetics, hermeneutics, and related subjects.

Readings

Field Overview:

Short Reading List

Essential reading on the classic concerns and recent trends of the field.

Full Bibliography

Extended reading in categories such as Journal Special Issues; Literary Theory; Poetics; Post-Secular Theory; the Bible; the Qur’an; Religious Ways of Reading; Theology and Literature

Knight, Mark, ed. The Routledge Companion to Literature and Religion. Routledge, 2016.

Research Aids

ATLA

Premier collection of databases, abstracts, digital historical archives, library guides, “Websites on Religion” project, and other resources.

The ARDA

Empirical data on religion and religious organizations.

More Research Aids

Sacred Texts and Lexica

The Bible, Chinese Sacred Texts, Jewish Sacred Texts, The Qur’an, The Sutras, The Vedas

Digital Libraries

Dead Sea Scrolls; Patrologia Latina; Ante-Nicene, Nicene and Post-Nicene texts; medieval female mystics, Catholic Reformation, Classic Protestant texts, Puritan sermons, twentieth-century theology; sources on Islam.

Tailored Resources

in development

by literary field

American Literature

A bibliography prepared by the American Religion and Literature Society (ARLS)

African American

Asian American

Childhood Studies

Ecocriticism

Graphic Novels

Hispanic and Latinx (U.S.)

Modernism

Modern Literature

Postcolonial Studies

Postmodern Literature

Postsecular Studies

Science Fiction

Shakespeare

Victorian

Women Writers

Global Regions

in development

Africa

Australia

Asia

Europe

South America

Current Series

Baylor University Press

Studies in Christianity and Literature

Bloomsbury Academic

New Directions in Religion and Literature

Bloomsbury

Bloomsbury Studies in Popular Fiction and Religious Dynamics

Brill

Studies in Religion and the Arts

Fordham University Press

Studies in Religion and Literature

Ohio State University Press

Literature, Religion, and Postsecular Studies

Palgrave Macmillan (Springer)

Studies in Literature and Religion

Springer: J.B.Metzler

Studies in Literature and Religion

University of Notre Dame Press