For Contributors

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The editors invite submissions in all areas of the history of Christianity, including its non-Western expressions. They request that contributions be grounded in original research, inform specialists, interest historians of Christianity in general, and defend a clear thesis.

The editors strongly prefer manuscripts running 6,000-11,000 words (or approximately 20-35 pages), not including endnotes. Submissions exceeding 12,000 total words (including endnotes) will not be considered for publication.

If the editors decide to publish your manuscript in Church History, they will ask you to assign the copyright of your work to the American Society of Church History. In return, the Society will grant you some nonexclusive rights to create derivative works from your article and to reprint it in works of which you are author or editor.

Church History cannot consider a manuscript if it (a) has been published elsewhere (in any language), (b) is currently under consideration by another journal, (c) has circulated in a public electronic forum such as a webpage or listserv, or (d) will be published as part of a book prior to publication in Church History. If any of these conditions applies to your article, the editors reserve the right to rescind their acceptance.

Black-and-white illustrations, maps, and tables are welcome. You may include photocopies of any illustrations when you first submit your article for consideration. These images and/or figures should not be embedded in your submitted manuscript; instead you should send them as separate files in addition to your manuscript. If the editors accept your manuscript for publication, they will ask you to provide camera-ready materials when you send the revised version of your essay. You must provide the editors with copies of letters of permission from copyright holders or from the individual or institutional owners of uncopyrighted illustrations.

Additional permissions may be required for the use of archival, interview, and privately held materials, as well as lengthy quotations from sources still in copyright. For further information on permissions, see the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, paragraphs 4.70-4.94.

To increase your manuscript’s clarity, the editors require that you include 3 to 7 subheadings that divide your essay into sections. Each subheading should start with a Roman numeral and should include a short descriptive phrase. For example, “III. Brooks and the Broad Church.”

The Review Process

One or more of the Editors reads each contribution. If deemed potentially suitable for Church History, the Editors—sometimes with the assistance of Associate Editors—assign the manuscript to reviewers.  Church History uses a double-blind peer review system in which authors will not know the names of reviewers, and in which reviewers will not know the names of authors. The peer review process often takes up to five months. Peer reviews are advisory and the Editors are the final arbiters of every article manuscript.

Once the peer review process is complete, the Editors inform the author about the decision. The Editors may:

·         Accept the manuscript

·         Reject the manuscript

·         Reject the manuscript with the option to revise and resubmit

·         Conditionally accept the manuscript, subject to light revisions and the production of a production copy in conformity with all Church History editorial guidelines, and the author’s completion of the copyright transfer form

Basic Style Guidelines

Church History’s house style mandates complete publishing information, using the most recent version of Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition), for all works mentioned in endnotes. On first citation, please include city and state of publication, short form of publisher’s name, and date—for example: Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1999. Include the full name of university presses—for example: Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 1999. You may eliminate the state names for New York, Chicago, Boston, and other large cities, but not for New Haven, Conn.; Cambridge, Mass.; Ithaca, N.Y., or Princeton, N.J. Also eliminate the state name if the publisher’s name includes the state name—for example, Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1999.

Quotations in foreign languages should not appear in the text. If necessary, translate quotations into English and include the original in endnotes. If a published English translation is z be double-spaced in 12-point font; endnotes must be double-spaced on separate pages following the text. The editors request the following items be submitted by email attachment in Word, or Rich Text Format to churchhi@umn.edu:

The manuscript. In order to protect your anonymity during the review process, your name should appear only on the title page of your essay.
A 200-word abstract. This is used during the review process and is required. Additionally, if Church History publishes your essay, the abstract will be included in the published version of your manuscript and the Cambridge Journals database and also may be on the Church History web page.

Please address any questions to:
Mike Kadow, Senior Assistant to the Editors
Church History: Studies in Christianity and Culture
Department of History, University of Minnesota
1110 Heller Hall
271 19th Ave. S
Minneapolis, MN 55455 USA
Email: churchhi@umn.edu

Further information about the journal and the editorial process can be found on our Cambridge page here.

Book Reviews

Each issue of Church History includes several book reviews. Publishers and/or authors should send a copy of books for review to:

Church History. Studies in Christianity and Culture
History Department
University of Minnesota
271 19th Avenue S, 1110 Heller Hall
Minneapolis MN 55455

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