Andover Theological Seminary was founded in 1807 by orthodox Calvinists who fled Harvard College after it appointed liberal theologian Henry Ware to the Hollis Professorship of Divinity in 1805.)

[5]: 4–5 Today, students and faculty come from a variety of religious backgrounds: Christian (all denominations), Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, and others.

In the past, it served as a home or office for a series of Divinity School faculty and staff, including the family of Brita and former dean Krister Stendahl, who lived in the Carriage House in the 1960s.

[14] Previously housed in Andover Hall, the library moved into its own two-story granite building, designed by Shepley, Bulfinch, Richardson and Abbott in 1960.

[15] In September 2001, the library completed an $11.5-million renovation that added two stories, enhanced its technology facilities and study areas, and improved its information systems.

[18] Rockefeller Hall, designed by Edward Larrabee Barnes in 1970, featured seminar rooms and a refectory on the ground floor and student housing above.

[19] A 2008 renovation by VSBA/Venturi, Scott Brown and Associates, Inc. transformed the upper floors into staff offices, modernized access and created the fourth LEED Gold building at Harvard.

In 1911, Harvard Divinity School and Andover Theological Seminary formed a partnership and agreed to house their collections together in a common library; when the educational partnership of the schools was dissolved in 1926, Andover Seminary's deposits remained in the library under the terms of a continuing agreement.

[26] The library's collections include all religious traditions in order to support the many approaches to the study of religion at Harvard Divinity School.

[27] Similarly, the rare book collection has strengths in early Protestant Christianity, Unitarian Universalism and related “nonconforming” traditions, and biblical studies.

[36] Directors of the CSWR have included Robert H. L. Slater (1958–64), Wilfred Cantwell Smith (1954–73), John B. Carman (1973–89), Lawrence E. Sullivan (1990–2003),[37] Donald K. Swearer (2004–10),[38] and Francis X. Clooney (2010–17).

[43] Directors of the Women's Studies in Religion Program include Brinton Lykes (1973–77),[44] Constance Buchanan (1977–97),[45] and Ann D. Braude (1998–present).

The Summer Leadership Institute (SLI) was a two-week training program that sought to establish theological instruction and grounding for individuals engaged in community and economic development.

Participants also developed individual plans of action, on a case-study model, applicable to the local work in their communities.

It was a full-time residential program, holding classes five days a week, with an emphasis on faith-based case studies of corporations and communities.

About 50 people were selected each year from around the United States and internationally to participate in lectures, seminars, and field visits with faculty from across Harvard and other recognized experts.

[60] The magazine features nonfiction essays, opinion pieces, poetry, and reviews about religion and its relationship with contemporary life, art, and culture.

[61] The magazine is sent free to Harvard Divinity School students, faculty, alumni, staff, and supporters; others are asked to subscribe.

[62] Past contributors have included Reza Aslan, Martine Batchelor, Sarah Sentilles, and Christian Wiman.