Catalog Search
Catalog Search - Try It Yourself
Catalog search tips for the Bible
Searching for information about books in the Bible is much easier if you know a few tricks. (Do not worry about precisely typing the punctuation in the examples below. The catalog works without it. I am including it here to make these ideas clear.)
First, you'll want to use the Advanced Search catalog option.
Once you are on the Advanced Search page, cgo to the "New Search" menu in the upper left and choose the option for Subject:
(I am going to use Genesis as an example, but this applies to all books in the Bible.)
Some subjects are basic, like:
Bible. Genesis
Some are 'subject strings', which means that the subject (topic) of the work is a little more particular. Examples:
Bible. Genesis--Antiquities (This is a great subject string for students interested in archaeology.)
Bible. Genesis--Authorship
Bible. Genesis--Commentaries
Bible. Genesis--Comparative studies
Bible. Genesis--Criticism, interpretation, etc.
Bible. Genesis--Feminist criticism
Bible. Genesis--History of Biblical events
Bible. Genesis--Sources
We call the part after the double dash the 'subtopic'. Keep an eye out for those!
You can also add subtopics directly to the subject "Bible. Old Testament", so if you don't want to look at a particular book, but want to look at the Old Testament as a whole, you can use:
Bible. Old Testament--Antiquities
Bible. Old Testament--Criticism, Interpretation, Etc.
(and so on. This works for "Bible. New Testament" too.)
There's even more:
Some books that we own have such a specific topic that they refer to particular books (i.e., chapters) of a book in the Bible. For instance, you can find this subject string in the catalog:
Bible. Genesis I (This refers to chapter 1 of Genesis.)
and even
Bible. Genesis I, 1-27--Criticism, Interpretation, Etc. (This one is even referring to particular verses of chapter 1 of Genesis.)
The point is this:
If you search for "Bible. Genesis" in the Subject search, you do not want to stop browsing the page when you find "Bible. Genesis". KEEP READING. Subjects are filed in alphabetical order, so after "Bible. Genesis", you'll find subjects referring to particular books and even verses in Genesis. You don't want to ignore those.
What if you are interested in more than one book?
There are also some subject headings that refer to groups of books in the Old Testament.
If you're interested in all of the books taken as a whole, then try:
Bible. Old Testament
(This also works for "Bible. New Testament")
There are also more specific groupings of books. For example, you might be interested in the Pentateuch. There's a subject heading for that:
Bible. Pentateuch
There are other groups of books, such as:
Bible. Apocrypha (See the box below for more on apocrypha)
Bible. Five scrolls
Bible. Former prophets
Bible. Historical books
Bible. Hexateuch
Bible. Minor prophets
Bible. Octateuch
Bible. Prophets (sometimes referred to in scholarly texts as the Latter Prophets; it's just called Prophets in the catalog)
Special topics
If you are interested in archaeology, you definitely want to look for these subjects:
Bible--Antiquities
Bible--Evidence, authority, etc.
or, as a more specific example:
Bible. Genesis--Antiquities (or whichever book you prefer)
Other useful subjects and subtopics are:
Assyro-Babylonia literature--Relation to the Old Testament
Bible--Geography--Maps
Bible--History of Biblical events
Bible--Concordances (These are massive indexes that list every instance of a word being used in the Old Testament. This is great for text analysis.)
Bible--Dictionaries
Bible--Extra-canonical parallels (This is for parallels between the Old Testament and other texts written close to the same time and place)
Bible--Geography
Bible--Hagiographia
Bible--History
Bible--Manuscripts
Bible--Prophecies
Bible--Rites and ceremonies
Bible--Textbooks (These often have really extensive bibliographies to help you get started in your research)
Bible--Theology
Egyptian literature--Relation to the Old Testament
Gnostic literature--Relation to the Old Testament
Middle Eastern literature--Relation to the Old Testament
Myth in the Old Testament
Ten commandments
Testament of Job
Testament of the twelve patriarchs
Ugaritic literature--Relation to the Old Testament
Apocrypha
"Apocrypha" has several meanings, but it often refers to the books that are left out of the canonical Bible. There are New Testament apocrypha and Old Testament apocrypha.
Apocryphal works often have common names, such as the "Gospel of James", and the formal names by which they are listed in the catalog, such as "Protevangelium Jacobi". Knowing those formal names can help you search in the catalog and in databases. If you search under the common name, the library catalog will point you to the formal name, so you'll see something like this:
Gospel Of James Infancy Gospel is not used in this library's catalog. Protevangelium Jacobi is used instead.
Here are the items in the catalog that are apocrypha (title search):
Here are the items in the catalog that are about apocrypha (subject search):
Apocryphal books - collections of texts of those books excluded from both the Catholic canon and the Protestant and Jewish canons of the Old Testament and from the Catholic and Protestant canons of the New Testament
Apocryphal books (Old Testament) - collections of texts of those books (frequently called Pseudepigrapha) related to the Old Testament, but excluded from both the Catholic canon and the Protestant and Jewish canons of the Old Testament. (Collections of texts of those books excluded from only the Protestant and Jewish canons of the Old Testament are entered under Bible. O.T. Apocrypha.)
Apocryphal books (New Testament) - collections of texts of those books excluded from the Catholic and Protestant canons of the New Testament.
Finding Ebooks and Online Texts
Most of our ebooks can be found in the library catalog using the techniques under the "Find Books" tab.
If you want to do full-text searching across ebook collections, go right to the collections to search them.
Humanities E-Book (American Council of Learned Societies)
This is an online, fully searchable collection of high-quality books in the humanities, recommended and reviewed by scholars. The ACLS HEB Project includes approximately 3,700 titles selected by scholars in the humanities. Over 350 titles are added each year.
Ebrary
This is a collection of over 80,000 academic ebooks that cover all disciplines. The database is easy to search or can be browsed by subject. There is the ability to create your own bookshelf by log in. This collection also provides the capability to download ebooks onto devices.
Ebook Academic Collection (EBSCOhost)
Over 110,000 full-text online books covering all subject areas and includes books from the public domain. EBSCO has two separate ebook Collections. This collection also provides the capability to download ebooks
Credo Reference
Offering access to over 1 million individual entries, Credo Reference contains all types of reference books : dictionaries, encyclopedias, thesauri, and books of quotations, and subject-specific titles covering everything from the arts to accountancy and law to literature.
Tihs search box searches their religious and theological studies texts:
OTHER TEXTS ONLINE:
Search by religion to find full-text ebooks, including many Bibles and classics.
Christian Classics Ethereal Library (https://www.ccel.org)
Includes many free ebooks and texts by Ante-Nicene fathers, Nicene fathers, and post-Nicene fathers.
Perseus Digital Library (https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/)
Includes many free ancient texts, particularly those pertaining to Greco-Roman culture.
Sacred Texts (https://people.ucalgary.ca/~lipton/texts.html)
Covers many religious traditions.
Early Christian Writings (https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/)
A collection of documents from the first two centuries of Christianity, with translations and commentary. It includes the New Testament and Apocrypha, and writings by Gnostics and Church Fathers.
Creeds of Christendom (https://www.creeds.net/Index2.htm)
Links to creeds of various Christian denominations.
Religion-online.org (https://www.religion-online.org/)
Links to over 6,000 articles and chapters written by religious scholars. Topics include the Old and New Testaments, Theology, Ethics, History and Sociology of Religion, Communication and Cultural Studies, Pastoral Care, Counseling, Homiletics, Worship, Missions and Religious Education.
Floor Plans & Maps
Archives - Garden Level 023
Browsing - 1st FL
CDs - 1st FL
Curriculum Resources - 2nd FL
Main Collection A-G - 2nd FL
Main Collection H-Z - 3rd FL
Microfilm - 2nd FL
Newspapers/Periodicals - 1st FL
Oversized - 3rd FL
Oversized Reference - 1st FL
Reference - 1st FL
Reserves - 1st FL Circulation Desk
Videos - 1st FL
Whitaker Collection - Archives
Search the Library from Your Browser
Browsing the shelves
If you want to browse the shelves, here are the call numbers that are used in religious and theological studies. (If you click on each one, it will take you to the list of the newest materials we've acquired in each area.) Books with these call numbers are shelved on the second floor of the library.
BJ - Ethics
BL - Religions. Mythology. Rationalism.
BM - Judaism
BP - Islam. Bahaism. Theosophy, etc.
BQ - Buddhism
BR - Christianity
BS - The Bible
BT - Doctrinal Theology
BV - Practical Theology
BX - Christian Denominations
If you want to browse Bible commentaries, go to BS440-BS2330.
Many of our Bible commentaries are in the Reference area on the first floor. Those books cannot be checked out, but you are welcome to make photocopies.
If there is a resource you need and we don't own it, please contact us and let us know!
Ask-A-Librarian
Need research assistance?
Click to Meet with a Librarian
Contact the library:
Call us at 401-341-2289
Email us at salvelibrarian@salve.edu
Chat with us from any library web page
Visit us at the information desk
Find us in the staff directory