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School of Theology and Christian Ministries: Services for Distance Students

Articles and eBooks at Home

You may view eBooks and download articles when you are not at Anderson's campus. 

To view ebooks and articles off campus, you may be prompted to sign in with your Okta information to authenticate. Because the library purchases access to these materials, the authentication process ensures you are a current student, faculty, or staff to access the materials.

To view resources you can access without AU authentication see our Open Access Database List.

A white sign in screen prompted AU students to authenticate

Scanned articles and book chapters to your home

For distance students, Nicholson Library staff will scan chapters from books (up to 10% of the book) or journal articles.  And we'll email the pdf to you. 

Begin by searching the library catalog, library.anderson.edu, or databases for book-chapters or articles that you want to use for course papers.

Then, to request chapters or articles, you may use the Nicholson Library Interlibrary Loan service (aka. ILLiad) at illiad.anderson.edu

If it is your first time using ILLiad, you will need to create a username, password, and address information. 

If you are a distance student, please

  • Add "(distance student") after your first name,
    e.g. First name: Jane (distance student)  Last name: Smith
  • For your Preferred Loan Delivery Method: select "Mail to Address"

Need help, email ill@anderson.edu, to ask the Interlibrary Loan librarian.  Or call the Nicholson Library Information Desk Phone: (765) 641-4280

The library staff needs specific information, such as the article citation, or the book citation and chapter title or pages. 

We cannot fill general requests like "Some articles about Luther" or "some chapter about liberation theology".  We'll try to fill request from a commentary, if you give us the commentary citation, and scripture passage, for example, "Nolland, John. Word Biblical Commentary : Luke 1-9:20. Word Biblical Commentary; Vol. 35a. Texas: Word, 1989.  Chapter about Luke 4:1-13"

Please use this service for resources related to AU course work, but not for your ministry in general, or to stock your personal library.

We deliver Library books to your home

For distance students, Nicholson Library staff will mail library books to your home.

First search the library catalog, library.anderson.edu, for books that you want to use for course papers.

Then, to request books, you may use the Nicholson Library Interlibrary Loan service (aka. ILLiad) at illiad.anderson.edu

If it is your first time using ILLiad, you will need to create a username, password, and address information. 

If you are a distance student, please

  • Add "(distance student") after your first name,
    e.g. First name: Jane (distance student)  Last name: Smith
  • For your Preferred Loan Delivery Method: select "Mail to Address"

Need help, email ill@anderson.edu, to ask the Interlibrary Loan librarian.  Or call the Nicholson Library Information Desk Phone: (765) 641-4280

Visit a nearby Seminary or Public library

Your local public library can request books from any library in the US.  It's called Inter-library Loan.  You need to have an exact citation for the book.  Just ask a friendly librarian.

If you live near a seminary or university, check out their library.  Most will allow you to read or copy chapters from their books at the library.  Some libraries will let you check-out books, particularly state funded universities and the partners below. 

Nicholson Library has specific agreements for you to check-out materials from

Anderson Public Library (click here for their website)

Indiana Partner libraries (click here for a map), and,

throughout the United States and Canada, from
     American Theological Library Association (ATLA)
       partner libraries (click here for a map ; click here for a list ; click here for program details).