Open Access Resources For Biblical Studies

I have recently posted on issues of crowdsourcing (Ancient Lives  and  Wikiloot), and a related issue is that of open access in scholarship. Since this is Open Access Week, I thought I would make a few comments on the matter, as well as noting some very useful and freely available resources for biblical studies.

The entire system of scholarly publication is really one that one would never create if starting from scratch. Academic research is conducted and a paper is written. While this is often often supported by grants, or even taxpayer dollars (particularly in the sciences), this is essentially done for free by academics and students. The paper is submitted to a journal, and peer-reviewed (for free). If it is accepted, it is published and then put behind the publisher's pay wall. Institutions then pay thousands, sometimes even tens of thousands, to 'buy back' the scholarship that their own employees and students, along with other academics, have produced. Not only do the universities essentially pay twice in this process, the material is generally unavailable to those who don't have a relationship with a university or pay for a subscription.