Not only does this page provide a list of general resources for
learning about the world's religions, it also models what an "annotated
webliography" would look like. These are all "outsider" sites
that provide information on multiple religions. For additional sites, follow the
links at the bottom of this page. Sites here are
listed in order of recommendation:
ReligionsFacts.com
A comprehensive site reviewing history, beliefs and practices of many of the world's major
religions. Extensive and detailed information on many aspects of each religion.
Also
contains links to "featured articles" on specific topics and
"religion in the news" (mostly from the BBC)
This site could be used as an online textbook on the world's religions
The site author (no name given) has a bachelor's degree in religion from an American university and a master's degree in religion from a UK
university. Material is presented as strictly informative. "ReligionFacts.com is not intended to promote or support any one religion and I have done my best to keep any and all personal biases out of it."
Religion and Faith
Provides basic information on major religions of the world, including Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism,
Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Sikhism (presented by a Hindu).
Pleasant, peaceful music to browse by. Sub-pages on each religion cover beliefs, history, worship, holydays, subdivisions, books
& articles, temples/churches/synagogue/mosque.
A good, introductory overview of each religion with enough depth but not too much.
This site is apparently produced by a Hindu source. While they
do provide additional Hindu based resources, they do a good job being objective
with regard to all the religions covered.
Overview Of World Religions
(Some pages still under construction)
Offers an overview of each of 11 major religions (excludes Baha'i - covered under Shia Islam).
Provides a family tree-like diagram of the historical development and divisions
of each religion. Clicking on these divisions gives an overview of each: Doctrines, history, symbols.
Also provides regional timelines for development of various religions in any given area of the world
(links from the timelines take one to the historical development diagrams).
The
introduction offers a good discussion regarding religion in general
Site edited by:
Elliott Shaw, Department of Religion and Ethics, St. Martin's College, Lancaster,
England
Michael Pye, Department of Religious Studies, Marburg University, Germany.
Exploring Religions:
Basic info on Five major religions (Buddhism Christianity,
Hinduism, Islam, Judaism). Information is limited but uses similar subtopics to ease compare and contrast
across religions. Includes a glossary for each religion.
Written
by Paul Flesher, director of the Religious Studies Program at the University
of Wyoming, which sponsors the site.
http://www.world-religions-professor.com/
is a brief overview of twelve major religions of the world, presented by Dr.
Jill Carroll, professor of religion in the Department of Religious Studies at
Rice University.
Religious
and Moral Education
Covers various religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam,
Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism
Good Resource. especially useful for images to color, photos of sacred objects for different
religions, glossary for various religions (including audio pronouncing foreign terms). Images are
accompanied by background information on the object/deity.
Also contains lists of educational achievement "targets" (objectives) for students
(what should you know) as well as a section focused on "personal
search", encouraging students to apply in their own lives, the values
inherent in various religions.
Produced by the Religious Education Section of the Faculty of
Education, the University of Strathclyde, England. "Our aim is the promotion of
appropriate and effective Religious and Moral Education." Material here is
presented objectively, to inform, although with every intent that this material
would have a positive influence on students who benefit from the material.
History for Kids: Ancient and Medieval
Religion:
Covers many basics about many of the world's religions, written on a level
appropriate to Middle School. A level also good for many young college
students, not very familiar with religion.
Organized and run by Karen Carr. Dr. Carr holds a PhD in
Classical Art and Archaeology from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and
is an associate professor of History at Portland State University
The Spiritual Sanctuary (site is being updated, some older links may not
work)
Basic info on all major religions and spiritual paths. Not very in-depth on each
religion but provides links for further exploration at many other sites.
Very snazzy appearance, meditative music. Provides scheduled chats and submissions from and benefits to members. An
inspirational and peaceful place to visit.
Although no site
author is indicated, the material here seems unbiased and informative.
Encyclopedia
of Philosophy & Religion from Fact Monster
Lots of brief but varied entries, by terms, related to various
religions and religion in general. Also provides biographies of countless
people important to various religions. Each page provides links to related
pages. Can be confusing to navigate through, once you begin to follow the
various links from one page to another.
Fact
Monster: Religion provides some interesting but brief coverage of a
limited number of facts related to religion
An
informative, but commercial site published by Pearson Education.
Crystalinks:
Contains more or less brief but interesting overviews of many different religions and spiritual
traditions, including ancient and mystical traditions such as Druidism, Wicca,
Kabbalah, Gnosticism, etc.
By Ellie Crystal: psychic,
therapist, Reiki master, teacher, author, researcher, lecturer, broadcaster.
Summaries
of World Religions from FECHA
This single page provides brief but fairly comprehensive descriptions of major religions as well as quite a number of different Christian based
denominations and faiths. I would not recommend the other material at this
site as of value for academic purposes, although it may interest you
personally.
FECHA is the "First Electronic Church
of America" A somewhat tongue-in-cheek site. It is unclear as to
who the site author is but there is no overt attempt to convert anyone to
anything. In fact, this site seems to be more about free exercise of religion
on the Web.
More general
sites
Websites on specific topics in
religion (for cross-cultural exploration)