Undergraduate Reading Lists

Buying and reading books before beginning a degree will prove immensely valuable. However, you are not expected to buy all or even most of the books here! All these books have been recommended by the people who will be teaching you, but you should browse and explore. The references are all linked to ‘Amazon’, and so you can compare the price and sometimes the content of the books. Choose whatever seems best.

This list is available in both HTML and pdf formats, and both include links. Amazon is usually competitive, but try your local bookshop if you prefer.

Degree Programmes

Find your degree title below, and click on module titles to view the books. Click book titles for Amazon, and section titles to return to this menu.

BA Abrahamic Religions: Judaism, Christianity & Islam
General Introduction, AR102: Judaism: Beliefs and Practices, AR103: Christianity: Beliefs and Practices, AR104: Islam:Beliefs and Practices, PH101: Philosophy of Religion

BA Philosophy
General Philosophy, PL101:Knowledge and Reality, PL102:Introduction to Value, PL103:Greek Philosophy, PL104:Reason and Argument, PL105:Philosophical Texts

BA Philosophy, Religion and Ethics
PH100:Introduction to Philosophy, ST102:Introduction to Theology and Religion, PH101:Philosophy of Religion, PS100:Foundations of Christian Ethics

BA Philosophy and Theology
General Philosophy, PL102:Introduction to Value, PL101:Knowledge and Reality, OT100:Introduction to Old Testament, NT100:Introduction to New Testament, CH102:Church History

BA Theology
OT100:Introduction to Old Testament, NT100:Introduction to New Testament, CH102:Church History, PS300:Christian Ethics, PH101:Philosophy of Religion

Bachelor of Divinity
OT100:Introduction to Old Testament, NT100:Introduction to New Testament, CH102:Church History, ST103:Fundamentals of Revelation, SR100:Religion and Religions, either PH101:Philosophy of Religion, or one of: OT101:Biblical Hebrew, NT101:New Testament Greek, LN100:Latin for Beginners, PS300:Christian Ethics

Jacob Neusner, Religious Foundations of Western Civilization: Judaism, Christianity and Islam (USA: Abingdon Press, US, 2006)

F E Peters, The Children of Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Princeton Classic Editions (Princeton University Press, 2004)
This is a short, challenging-to-read history of the development of these three religions, with chapters dedicated to such topics as Community and Hierarchy, Law, and Theology.

C.M. Pilkington, Teach Yourself Judaism (London: Hodder, 2003)
This text is clear, accessible and provides a good introduction to the course.

It is worth becoming familiar with the website http://www.myjewishlearning.com.

Alister McGrath, Christianity: An Introduction, 2nd edition (Oxford: Wiley Blackwell, 2005)

Abdullah Saeed, Islamic Thought: An Introduction (Routledge, 2006)
This book is a fresh and contemporary introduction to the philosophies and doctrines of Islam. The author traces the development of religious knowledge in Islam, from the pre-modern to the modern period. Exploring the influences of Islamic Art and Culture, and the Islamic texts of the Qur’an, and hadith, as well as Sufism, Islamic laws, and politics, Islamic Thought is ideal for anyone who wants to understand more about Muslims and the Islamic faith.

Carl W Ernst, Following Muhammad: Rethinking Islam in the Contemporary World (University of North Carolina Press, 2003)

Simon Blackburn, Think: A Compelling Introduction to Philosophy (Oxford: Oxford Paperbacks, 2001)

A.C. Grayling, Philosophy: A Guide Through The Subject (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1998)

Thomas Nagel, What does it all mean? (Oxford: OUP, 2004)

Perry, John, Bratman, Michael and Fischer, John Martin, editors, Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings, 4th edition (Oxford: OUP, 2006)

John Cottingham, Western Philosophy: An Anthology, Blackwell Philosophy Anthologies (Oxford: WileyBlackwell, 1996)

Michael Loux, Metaphysics: A Contemporary Introduction, Routledge Contemporary Introductions to Philosophy , 3rd edition (Routledge, 2006)

Duncan Pritchard, What is this thing called knowledge? (Routledge, 2006)

Robin Waterfield, The First Philosophers: The Presocratics and Sophists, Oxford World’s Classics (Oxford Paperbacks, 2009)The First Philosophers: The Presocratics and Sophists (Oxford World's Classics)

Jonathan Barnes, Early Greek Philosophy (Penguin Classics, 2004)Early Greek Philosophy (Penguin Classics)

Stephen Law, The Philosophy Gym (Headline Book Publishing, 2004)
This is a general introduction to philosophy, which has some particular value for this course.

Theodore Schick and Lewis Vaughn, How to think about weird things (McGraw Hill, 2007)

Cottingham, John, editor, Rene Descartes: Meditations on First Philosophy: With Selections from the Objections and Replies (Cambridge: CUP, 1986)

The very best introduction for students is to read Descartes.

David Hume and T.L. Beauchamp, An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding, Oxford Philosophical Texts (Oxford: OUP, 1999)

Anthony Kenny, The Oxford Illustrated History of Western Philosophy, Oxford Illustrated Histories (Oxford: OUP, 2001)

Robert C Solomon and Kathleen M Higgins, A Short History of Philosophy (Oxford: OUP, 1996)

Peter Vardy and Julie Arliss, The Thinker’s Guide to God (Alresford, UK: John Hunt Publishing, 2003)

Richard Coggins, Introducing the Old Testament, 2nd edition (Oxford University Press, 2001)

New Revised Standard Version Bible (Anglicized), popular text edition (OUP, 1995)

Revised Standard Version Bible (Anglicized), Common edition (Collins, 1984)

David G Horrell, An Introduction to the Study of Paul, second revised edition (T & T Clark Ltd, 2006)

Graham Stanton, The Gospels and Jesus, second revised edition (OUP, 2002)

Richard Harries and Henry Mayr-Harting, Christianity: Two Thousand Years (Oxford University Press, 2001).

This is a concise and lively summary of the two thousand years of the history of Christianity, which will provide you with an outline sketch that the lectures will proceed to fill in.

Richard Gula, Reason Informed by Faith: Foundations of Catholic Morality (Paulist Press International, 2001)

Hoose, Bernard, editor, Christian Ethics: An Introduction (London: Continuum, 1998)

Richard Gula, Reason Informed by Faith: Foundations of Catholic Morality (Paulist Press International, 2001)

We shall be starting with the Greek alphabet at the first lecture. No previous knowledge is required. Text books will be available for purchase (about £8) at the first lecture. It would be useful, but not necessary, to know (a) an outline of Greek History down to AD100, and (b) some of the most common Greek myths. Both of these are readily available in the children’s section of a public library.

G Abbot Smith, A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament (T & T Clark Ltd, 19XX)

Later in the term, a dictionary will be required. Do not buy any other dictionary.

The teaching of Latin will start from scratch. Text books will be provided at the first lecture. Suggestions about a Latin dictionary will be made at that time. It would be useful to know (a) an outline of the history of Rome and its Empire, (b) the common Roman myths and legends. Both of these could be found in the children’s section of your local library.

Christian theological reflection on other religions remains an area where there has to be ongoing creative exploration. These books represent a range of contemporary Catholic Christian approaches to the reality of religious pluralism. Each author aims to combine the central teaching of Christian faith with an openness to the presence of God in other religious traditions.

Michael Barnes SJ, Theology and the Dialogue of Religions (Cambridge: CUP, 2002)Theology and the Dialogue of Religions (Cambridge Studies in Christian Doctrine)

Gavin D’Costa, The Meeting of Religions and the Trinity (T & T Clark Ltd, 2000)The Meeting of Religions and the Trinity

Jacques Dupuis SJ, Christianity and the Religions (Orbis, 2002)

Avery Dulles, Models of Revelation (USA: Orbis Books, 1996 reprint)Models of Revelation

It would be valuable for you to have read this book, very especially pp. 3-128. Ownership of this significant book, while not essential, would be a plus.