Modern Believing - An Invitation to Authors

An Invitation to Authors

Publishing in Modern Believing

The Editor invites contributions from authors. Modern Believing is the journal of Modern Church. It is the Journal of Theological Liberalism. It publishes articles in Modern Theology, Practical Theology, Theological Ethics, and in any academic area which promotes Liberalism in Theology and Church.

Modern Believing has a century long record of contributions from church leaders, established theologians, and newly-emerging theological minds. It is committed to high academic standards and to high accessibility, and it values each equally. It seeks to promote a critical, creative and constructive spirit in theological enquiry. It provides opportunities for new voices in the Academy and in the Church to become heard.

Peer Review Criteria

Articles are peer reviewed against three criteria:

the promotion of liberal Theology in the Church and in the Academy;
originality and academic integrity; and
accessibility to its readers in academic and church life, and beyond.

Articles

LENGTH: Articles should not exceed 3,500 words. Exceptionally and by agreement with the Editor an article may be up to 5,000 words.

ABSTRACT: The article should be preceded by an abstract of not more than 100 words, printed in italics.

KEYWORDS: The article should also be preceded by a list of keywords, up to a maximum of 12, in capital letters and alphabetical order. Abstracts and keywords will facilitate electronic searches and increase the on-line readership of the article.

LANGUAGE: Inclusive language must be used. In order to increase accessibility, a clear, simple style of writing should be attempted, and technical words avoided or explained.

ORIGINALITY: Only articles that have not previously appeared or been presented concurrently elsewhere will be considered for publication. The Editor welcomes responses to articles previously published in Modern Believing.

THE REVIEW PROCESS: The article will be peer reviewed, by one or two reviewers and by the Editor. Authors should omit references to themselves within the article so that the process of review can be undertaken anonymously.

BIOGRAPHICAL STATEMENT: The article should be accompanied by a short 'bio', up to a maximum of 25 words. If accepted for publication, the statement will appear at the end of the article.

AUTHOR'S POSTAL ADDRESS: Authors receive two copies of the edition in which their article appears. These are sent to the postal address which should be included in the bio.

Preparation of Files

PAGE LAYOUT AND SPACING: The 'page' size should be A4. The line-spacing should be double. All margins should be set at 2.54 centimetres.

TITLE: The title should be centred. The author's name should be omitted (to enable review to be anonymous).

PARAGRAPHS: The first line of each paragraph should be indented by 1 centimetre. There should be one line space between paragraphs.

SUB-HEADINGS: In addition to the title, up to three levels of headings may be used.

QUOTATIONS: Single quotation marks should be used, except in the case of a quote within a quote, when double quotation marks should be used. Long quotations (30 or more words) should be indented and in a separate paragraph without quotation marks.

BIBLICAL QUOTATIONS: The New Revised Standard Version or the New Jerusalem Bible are preferred. Both are readily available on-line, for example at http://bible.oremus.org/ and at http://www.catholic.org/bible/.

ABBREVIATIONS OF BIBLICAL BOOKS: Abbreviations should follow the form given in the Revised Standard Version.

PROOF-READING: The text of the article and the accuracy of the references should be very carefully checked prior to presentation. Proofs are not sent to authors.

Preparation of References

End-notes are used. Full bibliographical references should be contained in the notes. There is no need for a separate bibliography.

At the end of the article, references should be in accordance with the following examples:-

BOOKS: Don Cupitt, After All: Religion without Alienation (London: SCM, 1994), p.108.

SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES TO A BOOK (avoiding op.cit, ibid, etc.): Cupitt, After All, p.110.

ARTICLE IN A BOOK: Paul Willis, 'Cultural Production and Theories of Reproduction' in L. Barton & S. Walker (eds), Race, Class and Education (New York: St Martin's Press, 1983).

SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES TO AN ARTICLE IN A BOOK: Willis, 'Cultural Production', p.53.

JOURNAL ARTICLE: I.G. Hopkins, 'The Fiscal Role of the Marketing Boards in Nigeria', The Economic Review, 73, 1969, p.83.

SUBSEQUENT REFERENCES TO A JOURNAL ARTICLE: Hopkins, 'The Fiscal Role of the Marketing Boards', p.85.

INTERNET: Jane Williams, 'Images of the Love of God', Church Times, Issue 7763, 30 Dec 2011. http://churchtimes.co.uk/content.asp?id=122450 [accessed 05 Jan 2011]. If possible, the reference should provide the same details as book and journal references. Details of the author, title, full web address, date of publication, and date accessed, must be given. If the date is missing, write 'Undated'.

NEWSPAPERS: Guardian, 18 Feb. 1985, p.9.

Editorial Policy

REVIEWS: The Editor will invite members of the Editorial Board, or members of an independent panel of reviewers, to review articles presented for publication. The process of review will be conducted as speedily as possible, but no guarantee can be given about the length of time required.

REVISIONS: If reviewers recommend revisions prior to publication, the Editor will forward the recommendations to the author so that the revisions may be made.

REJECTIONS: The Editor may give reasons for rejecting a manuscript but is under no obligation to do so. The Editor's decision is final.

LOSS OF FILES: The Editor accepts no responsibility for the loss of files. Authors are therefore advised to keep at least one copy of their file.

AMENDMENTS: The Editor reserves the right to shorten, and to make editorial amendments to, any article prior to publication.

GUARANTEE OF PUBLICATION: The Editor cannot guarantee a date for the publication of an article that has been accepted.