| A-Level Links |
Religion |
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| Hartford Institute | BBC Online | ||
| The Hartford Institute site offers a range of information and resources relating to all aspects of the Sociology of religion. In terms of links, for example, these include sociologists of religion, research resources and professional associations. More substantially, you'll also find a good range of on-line articles (most, admittedly, aimed at undergraduate audiences) and an extensive bibliography. The area you'll probably find most-useful, however, is the Encyclopedia (sic) of Religion and Society that offers articles on a wide range of religious themes. | As you'd expect from the BBC, this is a professional, accessible, site that offers a range of information about religion and "the UK's main religions". As you might expect, the information is fairly rudimentary, but it's probably sufficient for (AS-level) students who want an overview of the history and basic ideas of various religions. | ||
| Religious Worlds | Religion Resources on the Internet | ||
| Religious Worlds is a site that provides a comprehensive selection of religion-themed links (from those dealing with religious freedom, through freedom from religion, to religious experience). The links are clearly and fully annotated, making this a useful starting point for any student needing to explore facets of religious life in more detail. | From the University of Virginia, this is a large collection of links to sites, covering religious traditions, religious movements and religion in general. A lot of the links are to sites aimed at undergraduates, but if you're looking for something specific of a religious nature, this is probably a good starting place. | ||
| Adherents | BBC AS Guru | ||
| In basic terms, this is a huge database of religions and statistics about religions. In other words, it should help you to find information about membership numbers, location and contacts for just about any major religion, denomination or sect (and an incredible number of minor ones as well...). | Although aimed at General Studies students this section provides some interesting - if a little limited - information relating to areas like definitions, conflict and consensus. There's the usual mix of text and activities here and, while it's noting revolutionary, it's a helpful introduction to some areas covered in the Sociology Specification. | ||
| Religious Tolerance | Religion in Social Context | ||
| Although part of a much larger site, this particular link focuses on definitions of cults, sects and denominations. Although it can be a bit long-winded at times the site provides some useful - and well-linked - information in these areas. | Although this seems to be an incomplete site originally designed to support the textbook of the same name, there is nevertheless a couple of useful pages here - in particular a short glossary and an observation-based activity. | ||
| General Sociology Links |
Religion |
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| Max Weber | Bare-Faced Messiah | ||
| Everything you ever wanted to know - and then some - about Weber and religion is included on this site. In basic terms, if you want to read Weber's primary texts (such as "The Protestant Ethic..."), then you'll find it here, alongside general commentaries about Weber's life and studies. The target audience is undergraduate (and people who don't really get out as much as they probably should...). | If you're interested in Scientology (and let's face it, who isn't?) and want to know how it all began (with an obscure science-fiction writer called L. Ron Hubbard) then this is the site for you. Basically, it's the complete text of Russell Miller's 1987 magnum opus (which you can read on-line or download as a text file), plus a few bits-and-bobs (reviews, interviews and "key documents which expose Hubbard's falsehoods"). Oh, and there's also a very interesting section detailing the attempts of the "Church" of Scientology to suppress the book - scary stuff indeed... | ||
| Scientology | Religious Movements Project | ||
| It's not like I've got anything against Scientology, per se, (so please don't bug my 'phone or hire private detectives to stalk me - my life's not that interesting), but Scientology does take itself and it's interests very, very, seriously, as evidenced by this interesting collection of articles about the activities of "The Church". All things considered, I think you should probably be afraid. Very afraid. | This project, hosted at the University of Virginia, contains extensive profiles of just about every religious movement you could care to name - and a few more, just-in-case. There's more stuff on-site, but if you need to know anything about any religious movement (past, present and, possibly, future), this is the site for you... | ||
| Church of England | World Religions | ||
| Everything you ever wanted to know about the C of E (but couldn't be bothered to ask) is here of the official site. This is not strictly (or even remotely) true but you will find some interesting material about the Church and its activities here. | Once (or even if) you find your way past all the "wacky and zany" stuff you'll find a huge range of links to sites dealing with just about every form of religion that's ever been invented (and probably a few that haven't - yet). | ||
| RE-XS | Religion In Victorian Britain | ||
| This is all a bit puzzling. One of the site's stated aims is to "support religious and moral education in schools" and the design suggests it's probably aimed at primary age (under 11) kids (lots of flashing lines, cartoon graphics and the like), but some of the content is definitely aimed at an older age group. There's also material for RE teachers available, so it's probably a case of having a root around to see what's on offer at any particular time. | Part of the very wonderful Victorian Web, the focus here is on religious behaviour and belief in 19th century Britain. Given that the site's aimed at American undergraduates it is, as you might expect, pretty text-heavy in places, but there's a lot of useful information here for both teachers and students. Not integral to the A-level course, but worth exploring if you want to understand the historical relationship between religion and society. | ||
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