Finding Online Resources

Identifying Reliable Sources

When libraries and card catalogs were the only options for researchers, there was little question about whether a source was acceptable. But in the digital age, students often need guidance to avoid making a mistake in choosing evidence for their argument. Fortunately, the internet is a treasure trove of digitized versions of historical texts, as well as commentaries and secondary sources that are suitable for many CTH courses. Here are some guidelines for finding evidence that would be acceptable in a scholarly paper:

1. Books from a reputable publisher

2. Articles from peer-reviewed scholarly journals, especially Cranmer Theological Journal

3. Works available in an academic database such as JSTOR
   Note that Google Scholar is a specialized search engine that searches across multiple article databases.

4. Historical manuscripts and translations that have been made available on a reputable site (such as an .edu site or a site recommended by a professor)

Avoid the following:

1. 1. Self-published books or monographs, unless you trust the author

   2. Personal blogs and other social media sites

   3. Websites that have an obvious heretical ax to grind (unless you are arguing against the heresy)

   4. Wikipedia and other crowd-sourced information sites

   5. Dictionary definitions (seldom useful in theological writing)

Listed below by categories are some excellent starting places for research:

Theological Resources- General

• • Christian Classics Ethereal Library - Valued for the individual works it presents but also for the search function that looks across the entire database of works 

  • Link to list of available works by the Church Fathers

  • Link to the CCEL Study Bible

• The Confessions of St. Augustine

• New Advent Roman Catholic website:

  • Selected works by Church Fathers

  • Catholic Encyclopedia

Theological Resources- Anglican

• Cranmer Theological Journal

• ACNA Catechism: To Be a Christian

• Anglican Compass: Recommended Anglican Resources (some free, some not)

• The Anglican Library

• New Scriptorium

• Project Canterbury

• Reformed Anglican Library (Anglican book list)

• Resources on the Thirty-nine Articles of Religion

• Prydain

Individual Anglican Authors/Scholars

• Selected Works by J.C. Ryle

• The Works of Richard Hooker

• Video Presentations by Alister McGrath

• An Outline of an Anglican Life by Louis Tarsitano

• Francis J Hall's Dogmatic Theology

• Ninety-six Sermons by Lancelot Andrewes

Prayer Books, Liturgies, and Liturgy Collections

• Anglican Liturgies

• Orthodox Liturgies

• The Divine Liturgy of St. James

• Anglican Books of Common Prayer

  • Summary of the origin of Cranmer's Collects

• Private Prayers put forth by authority during the reign of Queen Elizabeth

• REC Book of Common Prayer

General Academic Resources

• JSTOR online library (register for a free account for access to academic journals)

• Online books: University of Pennsylvania

• Project Gutenberg (provides access to multiple resources in digital format)