Are you interested in submitting to this Journal? We recommend that you review the About the Journal page for the journal's section policies, as well as the Author Guidelines. Authors need to register with the journal prior to submitting or, if already registered, can simply log in and begin the five-step process.

1. Focus and Scope

The Pan-African Journal of Theology accepts and publishes original research areas of biblical and theological studies. These include but are not limited to biblical archaeology and history of antiquity; Hebrew Bible and New Testament studies; Church History; historical, biblical, systematic, and philosophical theology; science and religion; practical theology, ethics; world religions; and missiology. PAJOT also accepts short articles written from the perspectives herein mentioned.

2. Online Submission

Authors shall submit their articles electronically through the journal's online submission, and the tracking system available at https://journals.aua.ke/pajot. This system will guide authors stepwise through the submission process. Authors will be required to upload the sources files of their articles in the preferred format of Microsoft Word for the text and PNG or EPS for figures. The system automatically converts the sources files into a single PDF file which is used in the peer-review process.

3.  Articles

PAJOT prefers articles of 5,000-10,000 words, including footnotes. Longer articles may occasionally be accepted if they are of particular significance and if space is available in the Journal. (It is recommended that authors check with the editor for such articles). PAJOT also solicits shorter articles of (2,000-3,000 words), including a bibliography. 

The Journal uses the Turabian referencing style or the Society Biblical Literature (SBL) Handbook of Style. Follow Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, 9^th ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2018) for citations and references.

4. Reviewer Process

This journal operates a double anonymized review process. The Chief Editor initiates and coordinates the preliminary assessment of all contributions to determine suitability for publication in the journal.  Articles deemed suitable are then typically sent to a minimum of two independent expert reviewers to assess the quality and value of the paper. A potential author will get a response within three months of submission of an article. Where a manuscript may need revisions to address the concerns and recommendations emanating from the review process, such is communicated to the author to make necessary revisions and re-submit for consideration. The Chief Editor guides in the final decision regarding the acceptance or rejection of articles.

To ensure anonymity in the review of manuscripts, identifying material should be kept out of the manuscript. A front-page giving authorship, institution affiliation, biographical statement, and acknowledgments is provided in a separate file. Only the title is provided for identification on the manuscript and abstract received by the reviewers.

5. Submission and Checklist

The online submission system guides authors step by step through the process of entering the article details and uploading the source files. Before sending your paper to the journal for review, check the following:

1. The submission has not been previously published and is not before another journal for consideration.
2. The submission is in Microsoft Word format.
3. The article length is between 5,000 and 10,000 words, or between 2,000 and 3,000 words.
4. One author has been designated as the corresponding author with contact details (email, or full postal address)
5. All necessary files (text and figures) are available. [Even if you have your figures (images) embedded in the paper, you are still required to provide the corresponding source files during the submission process]
6. The manuscript has been “spell and grammar checked.”
7. All sources cited in the work are listed in the bibliography.
8. Permission has been obtained for the use of copyrighted material from other sources (including the Internet).

6. Publication Ethics

The Adventist University of Africa (AUA) and the Pan-African Journal of Theology are committed to the highest ethical standards at all stages of the publication process. We subscribe to the guidelines outlined by the  Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE).

6.1. Ethical Guidelines for Authors

Originality. Authors should ensure that papers submitted to PAJOT have not been published or are not under consideration for publication in another journal.

PAJOT subscribes to a zero-plagiarism policy. Plagiarism in any form (e.g., verbatim copying, copying of ideas, text, data, and other creative works without attribution, self-plagiarism, etc.) constitutes a severe violation of the principles of scholarship and is not acceptable. Likewise, we seek to protect the reputation of the journal against malpractice. All manuscripts submitted for publication to PAJOT are cross-checked for plagiarism using Turnitin software. It is the responsibility of authors to acknowledge all sources appropriately. Manuscripts found to be plagiarized during the initial stages of review are outrightly rejected. If evidence of plagiarism is discovered after acceptance or publication of the paper, the author will be offered a chance for rebuttal. If the arguments are not satisfactory, we reserve the right to act, including, but not limited to: retracting the article; taking up the matter with the author’s Institution/University, Funding Agency, or relevant academic bodies or societies.

Permissions. Authors must ensure their contribution does not infringe any copyright or other intellectual property rights or any other rights of any third party. Permission must be obtained to use copyrighted material (text and images) from other sources (including the Internet).

Authorship. All authors who have made a substantive contribution to the article should be listed. Principal authorship, authorship order, and other publication credits should be based on the relative professional contributions of the individuals involved, regardless of their status. A student is usually listed as principal author on any multiple-authored publication that substantially derives from the student’s dissertation or thesis.

Conflict of Interest. All authors must disclose any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) their work. Examples of potential conflicts of interest include employment, consultancies, honoraria, paid expert testimony, patent applications/registrations, and grants or other funding.

6.2. Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers
Peer reviewers must conduct reviews in an ethical and accountable manner. They are required to:

1. Declare any potential conflicts of interest relating to a specific article or author.
2. Assess the scholarly merits and value of the assigned manuscript and determine if it is valuable enough to be published.
3. Provide constructive critique and feedback that will help the author(s) to improve the manuscript.
4. Check and highlight any errors, inconsistent arguments, or gaps in the manuscript.
5. Maintain the confidentiality of the review process: not sharing, discussing with third parties, or disclosing information from the reviewed paper.
6. Assist and uphold the credibility of the journal by helping to maintain the quality of the journal.
7. Submit written review reports on time.

6.3. Ethical Guidelines for Journal Editor
The Chief Editor is ultimately responsible for the overall quality of the intellectual content of the Journal. He/She is required to:

1. Initially assess all manuscripts for suitability for the journal and determine if they should go through the review process.
2. Oversee the review process to ensure it is thorough, fair, and timely.
3. Provide explicit guidance to authors and reviewers on what is expected of them.
4. Make final decisions regarding which articles to accept or reject for publication based on quality and suitability for the journal.
5. Monitor the review process and resolve differences of opinion between reviewers and authors.
6. Maintain the highest standards of ethics and competence.
7. Protect the confidentiality of all material submitted to the journal and all communications with reviewers.
8. Inform the editorial board Chair and recuse from the duties regarding a specific manuscript in case of a conflict of interest.

6.4 Adjustment to Authorship

Before submitting an article, the author(s) must carefully verify the list and the order in which the authors' names appear on the manuscript. Any addition, deletion, or rearrangement of author names after acceptance of the article must be approved by the journal’s Chief Editor. To request such a change, the Chief Editor must receive the following from the corresponding author: (a) the reason for the change in the author list and (b) written confirmation (by email, or letter) from all authors that they agree with the addition, removal or rearrangement. In the case of addition or removal of authors, this includes confirmation from the author being added or removed. Only in exceptional circumstances will the Chief Editor consider the addition, deletion or rearrangement of authors after the manuscript has been accepted. While the Chief Editor considers the request, publication of the manuscript will be suspended. If the manuscript has already been published in an online issue, any requests approved by the Chief Editor will result in a corrigendum.

6. Evaluation Criteria

Manuscripts selected for publication in PAJOT is based on the following criteria:

1. Suitability of the subject matter and its significance to journal readership.
2. Theological soundness and timeliness of the information.
3. Compliance to recognized scholarly standards and the use of biblical-historical-grammatical methods in the interpretation of the Scriptures.

Only manuscripts of sufficient quality that meet the standards and scope of PAJOT will be reviewed.