Oxford Theology Resources Link

Hannie Riley, Wycliffe Hall's Librarian, has sensed God's call to support academic libraries in need overseas. In 2023, she set up Oxford Theology Resources Link to enable redistribution of books to help train Christian leaders and thinkers around the world.

Countries the charity is currently supporting include Myanmar, Uganda, South Sudan and Ukraine. 

Hannie Riley was deeply moved by stories she was hearing from these countries. How in Kyiv, despite being in the midst of a war zone, 190 students graduated last year from the city's seminary. How in South Sudan, students were walking for miles to attend residential programmes at a seminary whose pastor was not only teaching unpaid but, through lack of funds, was even cooking the students' meals.

'I felt a calling from God and when I heard these stories I just couldn't sit still any longer', Hannie says. 'So I set up a charity with 3 key principles: providing high-quality theology books, giving what the recipients need and want (not merely what I want to discard), and helping those libraries to be self-sustaining by empowering their staff.' 

Besides her work at Wycliffe, Hannie's roles as chair of ABTAPL (Association of British Theological and Philosophical Libraries) and vice-president of BETH (Bibliothèques Européennes de Théologie) mean that she's able to make connections that others couldn't.

This gives Hannie strong reach internationally and into the developing world. She says: "When I ask my contacts: 'what is your library like?', a response I often hear is: 'we don't really have one'. While academics individually have books; their institutions often lack them. There is a shortage of library resources to support teaching, learning and student needs".

Hannie is passionate about the role of books in developing academic independence. "Without access to books you can't be independent in research or learning. For people to be self-starting and develop critical thinking, good scholarly resources are essential. It can't rely on the input of missionaries alone."

"It's like how you can't just feed people - you need to equip them with the tools and ingredients to cook their own food", she adds.

There is a specific need for English-language texts. As Hannie reflects from growing up in South Korea, unless a subject of study has established popularity in a country, academic texts won't have been written/translated in the local language because the market is too small. So students need the English-language texts - which can't easily be sourced locally.

Most of the books Hannie sends are surpluses from Wycliffe and other theological libraries in Oxford, thanks to the perpetual turnover of library stock and generosity of retired academics and local clergy. 

The receiving libraries choose the books they wish to receive. Hannie explains: 'This respects their culture and preferences and avoids unwanted materials. I carefully curate the collections we send in consultation with academics at the receiving institutions. I want to empower them and ensure their voices are heard'.

Thanks to her cross-cultural background, Hannie is extremely savvy at navigating cultural community grapevines to identify reliable, low cost transport solutions. If you want to send books to Ukraine, the trick is to find a Ukrainian courier. With the right contacts, it can work out cheaper to send books from Oxford to Africa than to another UK city.

The sustainability of the receiving libraries is her main concern. "Every library needs someone to manage it - a committed staff member who is empowered, mentored, trained. We try to build this provision in to all of our projects". 

One thing Hannie is not preoccupied with is demonstrating the 'impact' of the projects. This might sound surprising, until you realise it's because Hannie is placing her trust in God as she is fully aware how God powerfully transformed Korea with Bible and theological books even before missionaries entered the country.

She emphasises: "Impact is not up to me. We just provide the books - whatever impact they are able to make is up to God! But I am expecting to witness something remarkable."

Hannie is keen to acknowledge Wycliffe Hall's support of her charity work - and also that of the student community, several whom have become regular volunteers.