Citing Biblical Sources in Chicago Style: Footnotes and Short Form | Study notes Theology

Chicago Format: Citing Biblical Sources in Chicago Style (Footnotes in Short Form)

This handout provides sample citations for the most frequently used Biblical sources. For full details on Chicago style, see The Chicago Manual of

Style (CMS) in the Clark Library reference collection (Z253 .U69 2003) or online.

Footnotes & Short Form:

 According to section 14.14 of The Chicago Manual of Style, if the bibliography includes all cited works, than all footnotes can use short form.

 Short form usually includes: Last name of author, Shortened form of title, Page number (see CMS sections 14.24 – 14.28)

 For online resources that don’t have page numbers: only cite the author and title (you don’t need to include the URL).

Author tips:

Title tips:

 Omit abbreviations such as ed. or trans.

 Cite last names for works with 2 or 3 authors. For works with

4 or more authors, cite the first author followed by et al.:

Jones et al.

 Omit initial articles such as A, An, The.

 Titles that contain more than 4 words should be shortened;

the order of words in the title should not be changed.

Formatting Footnotes:

 In Microsoft Word 2007, go to the References tab, look for the Footnotes group, and choose Insert Footnote. Note: MS Word does not indent

footnotes correctly; the first line of the footnote needs to be indented ½ inch (5 spaces). You will need to fix this.

 Footnotes should be the same font type and size as the rest of your paper. It is important to be consistent.

Choosing the best sources:

 Follow your professor’s guidelines.

 Use current sources: for theology it is preferable to use sources published in the past 20-30 years.

 Avoid using internet sources, except for articles in library databases (ATLA Religion Database, Religion & Philosophy Collection).

Commentaries (see CMS sections 14.69 – 14.132)

Footnote example:

Bibliography example:

Tips:

Single-

volume

commentary

1. Perkins, “Gospel According to

John,” 945.

Perkins, Pheme. “The Gospel According to John.” In The

New Jerome Biblical Commentary, edited by

Raymond E. Brown, Joseph A. Fitzmyer, and

Roland E. Murphy, 942-85. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:

Prentice-Hall, 1990.

 The chapter author is usually

listed at the beginning of a

chapter on a book of the Bible.

 Always include the city of

publication; add the state

abbreviation if the city is not well

known.

Multi-volume

commentary

1. Boring, “Gospel of Matthew,” 8:94.

Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In The New

Interpreter’s Bible, edited by Leander E. Keck, vol.

8, 89-505. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1994.

 The New Interpreter’s Bible Table

of Contents will list the author of

the chapter on your book of the

Bible.

 Only cite the chief/head editor.

First line of a footnote is indented .5”

Subsequent lines are not indented.

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Chicago Format: Citing Biblical Sources in Chicago Style (Footnotes in Short Form)

This handout provides sample citations for the most frequently used Biblical sources. For full details on Chicago style, see The Chicago Manual of

Style ( CMS ) in the Clark Library reference collection (Z253 .U69 2003) or online.

Footnotes & Short Form:

 According to section 14.14 of The Chicago Manual of Style , if the bibliography includes all cited works, than all footnotes can use short form.

 Short form usually includes: Last name of author, Shortened form of title, Page number (see CMS sections 14.24 – 14.28)

 For online resources that don’t have page numbers: only cite the author and title (you don’t need to include the URL).

Author tips: Title tips:

 Omit abbreviations such as ed. or trans.

 Cite last names for works with 2 or 3 authors. For works with

4 or more authors, cite the first author followed by et al.:

Jones et al.

 Omit initial articles such as A , An , The.

 Titles that contain more than 4 words should be shortened;

the order of words in the title should not be changed.

Formatting Footnotes:

 In Microsoft Word 2007, go to the References tab, look for the Footnotes group, and choose Insert Footnote. Note: MS Word does not indent

footnotes correctly; the first line of the footnote needs to be indented ½ inch (5 spaces). You will need to fix this.

 Footnotes should be the same font type and size as the rest of your paper. It is important to be consistent.

Choosing the best sources:

 Follow your professor’s guidelines.

 Use current sources: for theology it is preferable to use sources published in the past 20-30 years.

 Avoid using internet sources, except for articles in library databases (ATLA Religion Database, Religion & Philosophy Collection).

Commentaries (see CMS sections 14.69 – 14.132)

 Always include the city of

Other Biblical Reference Sources (see CMS sections 14.247 – 14.248)

Style Sheet for Biblical Citations

Theology Department

Students should check with each instructor for specifics appropriate to the assignments!

General Guideline

Once you have determined which translation of the Bible will be your default translation (e.g. New American

Bible translation as used in the College Study Bible ), it is customary to use “in line” references with

parentheses, for example (John 4: 5-6). To inform the reader which translation will be default, the first time you

cite the Bible in this way, insert a footnote at that point indicating, “The New American Bible translation will be

used throughout this paper” or the like. Please note that the direction for citing the Bible in A Writer's Resource

(2007) 378, Section 35/c/9 is a general rule that may apply for papers in courses other than Theology but is

not to be used in Theology courses. If at any time you choose to use a translation different from the default to

make a specific point, then you are to indicate that in the narrative of your text or in a footnote.

Titles of Bible books

If you are referring to a book or a chapter of a book, but not specific verses, you need to write out the name of

the book in full. Abbreviations are customary for citing book and chapter with specific verses. It is not

customary to use periods after abbreviated book names, but do put spaces between the abbreviations and

chapter numbers. Thus: Romans or Romans 9, but: Rom 9:2.

Citation of books, chapters, verses

Gospel. FYI: Europeans use a different format, putting commas here.]

17 only] and between chapter numbers, but only if no verses are given [Rev 1, 4 means chapters 1 and 4

of the Book of Revelation].

means the two verses 2:13 and 3:6 only].

from verse 13 to verse 17] or between chapter numbers without verses [Genesis 1-4 means chapters 1, 2,

3, and 4 of the Book of Genesis].

between different chapters (with or without spaces, does not matter much).]

Summary Chart

Matt 13:12 means verse 12 of chapter 13 of Matthew’s

Gospel

Romans 9 means all of chapter 9 of Paul's Letter to the

Romans

Rev 1, 4 means chapters 1 and 4 of the Book of

Revelation

Genesis 1-4 means chapters 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the Book of

Genesis

Mark 2:13, 17 means chapter 2, verses 13 and 17 only Mark 2:13-17 means chapter 2, from verse 13 to verse 17

2:13; 3:6 means the two verses 2:13 and 3:6 only 2:13 - 3:6 means the whole section from 2:13 to 3:

(sometimes seen as 2:13 – 3:6, using the double dash)

Love God and Your Neighbor (Matthew 22:36-40)

Sample Paper with Footnotes

According to Matthew 22:36-37, when Jesus is asked “which commandment in the law is the greatest” he

indicates “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”^1

This verse has connections to several other passages in the Bible, including Deuteronomy 6:5.^2 In this Old

Testament verse, love refers not to “a feeling but covenant fidelity, a matter of willing and doing.”^3 The

command to love God is part of the Shema, which habitually begins with a confession of the oneness of God; it

is not clear why this statement is not reflected in Matthew.^4

Jesus follows the command to love god with his pronouncement a second commandment, which is “You shall

love your neighbor as yourself” (Matt 22:39). However, the translation from the Hebrew indicates that these two

commands are of equal importance: “One cannot first love God and then, as a second task, love one’s

neighbor. To love God is to love one’s neighbor, and vice versa.”^5 This love is an ongoing task: “one obeys the

great commandment as one shows love towards those one meets daily.”^6