Sarum College Library

The library is primarily an academic resource to support Sarum College courses, local clergy and anyone with an interest in theology, ecclesiastical and local history.

Our stock covers philosophy, theology, ethics, spirituality, liturgy, church history, world religions and culture. We also have a large ‘stack’ of historical books, journals, sermons and pamphlets as well as a number of special collections.

Located in three rooms, the collection consists of books, journals, photocopying and internet facilities, as well as space to study, write and read in an attractive, comfortable and friendly environment.

Postgraduate and ministry training students at Sarum College are entitled to full use of the library’s facilities during the length of their course and will be issued with a membership card at the beginning of the course.

Anyone is welcome to join the library as an external member.

Annual membership is £50 for full borrowing rights or £40 for use as a reference library.

College visitors may become temporary members at reduced rates of £5 per day or £10 per week.

Alumni of Sarum College benefit from half-price membership and remote access to the Atla Religion database.

Accredited ministers in Salisbury Diocese may join the library free of charge and benefit from free postage.

If you are attending a conference or staying as a B&B guest you are welcome to use the library for reference purposes during your stay and to use the guest computer.

The collection began in 1860 by the then-Bishop of Salisbury, Walter Kerr Hamilton who founded Salisbury and Wells Theological College. His collection includes 274 pamphlets, tracts, sermons and charges, most from the 19th century.

In the late 1990s Sarum acquired several thousand books from the former Sowter and Clerical library in Church House, Salisbury. These now make up the majority of books in our local history collection.

Library titles are arranged in Dewey Decimal order. The main library room houses books in the first half of the Dewey sequence. The rest of the books are in library rooms 2 and 3.

The library subscribes to about 20 journals and several databases of journal articles including the Atla Religion database. Journals are listed in the library catalogue and available in the library. Sarum students may access online databases remotely; other library members may search them on the library computers.

Sarum College received a seven-volume Heritage Edition of The Saint John’s Bible in November 2023. The first handwritten and illuminated Bible commissioned by a Benedictine monastery since the invention of the printing press in the 15th century, each volume of this large-scale bible weighs more than nine kilos and is nearly a meter wide when open.

View the PBS video about the Bible and its role in the ecumenical work of St John’s Abbey in Collegeville, Minnesota.

More information and images 

Sarum College Library has a number of special collections and archives (see below).

Please contact the library if you would like more information about any of these collections or if you would like to consult any of them.

Some 5,000 antiquarian books are in the library’s ‘stack’, the earliest of which is a tiny bible from 1545. The books are mainly on theology, but include some history and other subjects.

A few of the books are unique to this library; some of the others are only to be found in the major university libraries or the British Library. The books are of interest to scholars and researchers, and may be viewed by appointment.

Titles in this collection have been cleaned and added to the online catalogue through the Beyond the Library Door project with Salisbury Cathedral Library, now in its final phase.

Visit the catalogue of unique rare books held by the Salisbury Cathedral Library

Sarum College Library has a collection of titles on science and faith themes.  The titles cover a range of topics related to AI, machine learning and the tech industry, including how machines learn human values, the power, politics and cost of AI, data bias and surveillance capitalism.

Browse the collection on the Sarum College Library catalogue

There are also free videos presentations from the Science and Faith Series 2023 on topics such as climate change, catastrophe, wellbeing, wonder and ethics.

Browse the Sarum College Learning Resources page

The Christian Socialism Archive was supported by the Christian Socialist Movement, now known as Christians on the Left. The Christian Socialism Archive is open to all on request.
Contents include:

• Christian Socialist Magazine from issue 1.
• The annual Tawney Memorial Lectures.
• CSM pamphlets
• Recruitment leaflets
• Conference / event leaflets
• CSM Conference / Event Speeches
• Miscellaneous speeches
• A few books

Additions to the archive are welcome

Sarum library houses an important local history collection, much of which came from the now defunct Sowter and Clerical Library.
The collection includes:

• ‘Notes and Queries’ from 1906 onwards
• ‘Dorset Natural History and Antiquarian Field Club’ from the end of the last century to 1937 (incomplete)
• The ‘Sarum Almanack’ from 1857 – 1960 (incomplete)
• The ‘Salisbury Diocesan Gazette’ from 1888 – 1933 (again incomplete).

These may be consulted in the library by request.

Among the library’s historical works is a collection of 274 bound volumes of pamphlets covering mainly nineteenth century tracts, sermons and letters.

Sarum College Library members have access to St John’s Timeline, a website offering a unique collection of videos from leading scholars who explore theological and philosophical concepts from the 3rd century to today.

The resource includes insights from the Old and New Testaments and the exchange of ideas between philosophy and theology.

Originally conceived by the Revd Tim Hull, the project was relaunched in 2021 as a partnership between Hymns Ancient and Modern and the Archbishop’s Council.  Recent additions include Anthony Reddie on James Cone, An Introduction to Phenomenology by Tim Hull (who conceived of this project originally) and An Introduction to Theology by Mike Higton, Sarah Brush and Anderson Jeremiah.

Contact library@sarum.ac.uk for access

The library holds an archive of the papers of Tom Baker, former principal of the ‘Salisbury and Wells Theological College’.

Michael Vasey was a member of the Church of England’s Liturgical Commission for many years, and an influential figure behind many of the ‘Common Worship’ services.

• Files bequeathed to Sarum relate Michael Vasey’s liturgical interest and involvement in the following areas:
• The Church of England’s Liturgical Commission
• The ecumenical Joint Liturgical Group (JLG)
• The international ecumenical English Language Liturgical Consultation (ELLC)
• The Roman Catholic Pastoral Liturgy Committee
• GROW (the Group for Renewal of Worship) and Grove booklets in the fields of worship, liturgy and spirituality
• Praxis
• The Durham diocesan liturgical committee
• General liturgical correspondence
• Material relating to the Church of England report ‘On the Way’ about patterns of nurture in the faith and the catechumenate
• Material relating to the liturgy of reconciliation, which was the subject of a projected volume of essays connected to possible future liturgical provision in the Church of England.

The library houses a small archive of the papers of the Rt Revd Graham Chadwick, one of the founding members of Sarum College and first director of the Institute for Christian Spirituality.