How to Feed and Weed Your Collection | Weeding Guidelines

Things We've Dug Up While Weeding | Reader Comments

Why Weed Religions?

The religion section of most school library media centers may seem small and relatively inactive compared to the rest of the collection. Why bother to weed? Because different religions and religious beliefs have been in the news lately, and students need current unbiased information in these sensitive times. Your students may turn to your collection to try to understand current conflicts and issues. Weed any old and misleading titles and offer them attractive works with a contemporary perspective.

Suggested Dewey Numbers to Check:

The 200 section will probably be small enough that you can review all to identify any titles to weed. The AV collection should also be checked for older titles and formats.

Specific Criteria for Weeding:

First, apply the standard physical criteria to weeding the religion section. Look at the overall condition of each title. Since this is a section that doesn't have heavy circulation, physical wear and tear might not be as obvious as other conditions such as smell and feel. (Pick it up and do the "sniff" test!)

Now look at the content. You probably have some weighty encyclopedias or atlases of religion, but if they are from the 1970s or 1980s (or even earlier!) they should be replaced with a newer edition. Any work that professes to address the beliefs of "today's" youth must be a current publication. If the title implies that it is a review of contemporary religious life and thought, be sure it was published within the last ten years. Then review the topics covered to see if they include what would appeal to students today. There are many post 9-11 books that address current religious concerns and interests.

Finally, look at format. That old filmstrip surveying the world's religions might be in good physical shape but it must be discarded.

Consider Weeding Titles Like These:

• African religions & philosophy, 1969. LCCN 70076092
• African religions : symbol, ritual, and community, [1976]. LCCN 75017519
• As Christians face rival religions; an interreligious strategy for community without compromise, [1962].
• Buddhism [filmstrip], 1978.
• By these faiths : religions for today, c1977. LCCN 77023324
• Christianity [filmstrip], 1978.
• Christianity among the religions of the world, [1957]. LCCN 57012066
• Comparative religion, [1961]. LCCN 62041983
• A dictionary of comparative religion, 1970. LCCN 77092089
• East and West in religion, 1958.
• The encyclopedia of American religions, c1978.
• The essential unity of all religions, [1966]. LCCN 66006517
• Ethics of world religions, 1978.
• Faiths men live by, [1958]. LCCN 58007375
• The faiths of mankind; a guide to the world's living, [1964]. LCCN 65-012492
• Founders of great religions, being personal sketches of famous leaders, c1931. LCCN 72013272
• The future of religions, [1966]. LCCN 66015864
• The great religions by which men live, 1966.
• Great religions of the world, 1978. LCCN 79103325
• The great religions : Islam [filmstrip], 1979.
• A guide to the religions of America : the famous Look magazine series on religion, plus facts, figures, tables, charts, articles, and comprehensive reference material on churches and religious groups in the United States, 1955. LCCN 55007133
• A guide to the world's religions, [1963]. LCCN 63007991
• Gurus, swamis, and avataras : spiritual masters and their American disciples, [1972]. LCCN 76175547
• The heathens, primitive man and his religions, 1948. LCCN 48005578
• The Hindu tradition [filmstrip], c1978.
• Hinduism [filmstrip], 1978.
• Introduction to Asian religions, 1957. LCCN 76359107
• Islamic philosophy and theology, 1962. LCCN 62051017
• The Jesus movement in America : accounts of Christian revolutionaries in action, 1971.
• The Jewish tradition [filmstrip], c1978.
• Judaism [filmstrip], 1978.
• Major world religions. Religions of East Asia; Taoism, Confucianism & Shintoism. [filmstrip], 1978.
• Many peoples, many faiths : an introduction to the religious life of mankind, c1976. LCCN 75037878
• Minority religions in America, [1972]. LCCN 79038979
• Modern trends in world religions, 1959. LCCN 60001277
• The new awareness : religion through science fiction, 1975. LCCN 7402263
• New gods in America; an informal investigation into the new religions of American youth today, [1971]. LCCN 72165087
• Non-Christian religions A to Z, [1963]. LCC 63-003397
• Religion in the Middle East : three religions in concord and conflict, 1969. LCCN 68021187
• Religion in the twentieth century, [1948]. LCCN 48005611
• Religions around the world [filmstrip], 1975.
• Religions in America : a completely rev. and up-to-date guide to churches and religious groups in the United States, 1963.
• Religions of America : ferment and faith in an age of crisis : a new guide and almanac, [1975]. LCCN 74011703
• Religions of primitive peoples, [1969]. LCCN 79088423
• The religions of the American Indians, c1979. LCCN 73090661
• The religions of the world, c1968.
• Strange sects and curious cults, 1961. LCCN 61007167
• This believing world; a simple account of the great religions of mankind, 1941.
• Understanding the new religions, 1978. LCCN 78014997
• Values in world religions, [1958].
• What the great religions believe, [c1963]. LCCN 63016374
• What's the difference? A comparison of the faiths men live by, 1965. LCCN 65017248
• The world's great religions, 1957. LCCN 57013674
• Young people and religion, [1970]. LCCN 73-124155