About the Journal
FOCUS AND SCOPE
TeoRel, Journal of Religious and Theological Studies (ISSN-e 2981-4022), is an annual publication edited by the Faculty of Theology and Religion and the Research Department of the Adventist University Corporation. It provides a platform for scholarly discussion in the areas of biblical, systematic, historical, and pastoral theology, as well as studies within the epistemological field of religious studies. TeoRel is geared toward theologians, researchers, professors, university students, and the broader theological academic community, both nationally and internationally. The journal uses a double-blind peer review system and publishes articles in both Spanish and English. The journal publishes an open access electronic version, making its content freely available and requiring no payment from authors for article publication or access, thus facilitating the global dissemination of knowledge.
EDITING AND REVIEW PROCESS
The TEOREL Journal's editorial process consists of the following phases:
Article Submission Phase
Receipt and registration of the publication request.
Authors will be promptly notified of their article's submission through the journal's management platform (OJS).
Initially, the article's topic, format, and relevance will be considered. The author(s) will be notified of:
a) Any necessary adjustments to comply with the editorial policy, provided these are minor, so that the revised article can be submitted for review.
b) Rejection of the article for publication because the topic is not of interest to the journal or the modifications to the article are too extensive.
The maximum time from receipt of the article until the evaluation is sent to the authors will not exceed six (6) months.
Double-Blind Peer Review Phase
Once the review described above has been completed (estimated time: 10 calendar days), the articles will be sent to two external reviewers considered experts in the subject matter. The Editor will send the reviewers the articles to be reviewed, as well as the evaluation guidelines, along with the evaluation form to be completed via the Open Journal System platform (estimated evaluation time: 30 days). It should be noted that this evaluation will be double-blind for both author(s) and reviewers; that is, the reviewers will receive the article without the authors' identities or any other identifying information. In the event of inconsistency between the evaluations, a third evaluation will be conducted, following the same double-blind review process. The reviewers will carry out their work under criteria of confidentiality and impartiality, adhering to the requirements outlined in the peer review forms, which specify the article validation criteria defined by the journal TeoRel.
Post-Evaluation Article Review Phase
Once the reviewers' decision is received, it is sent to the authors, without their contact information, along with notification of the reviewers' recommendation: publish without modifications, publish with minor modifications, publish with substantial modifications, or reject the article. In cases where the article is accepted with modifications, the author will also receive the reviewers' suggestions and comments and will have 20 calendar days from the date of the evaluation to make the necessary adjustments and send the revised version to the editor, along with a letter detailing the changes made (Changes Verification Form).
The editorial committee verifies the incorporation of the changes and, if deemed necessary, returns the article to the peer reviewer for their final review. The final decision regarding the publication of the article rests with the editorial committee after verifying that the modifications requested by the author have been incorporated. If the authors disagree with the evaluations, they will provide the necessary clarifications and justifications before resubmitting the article to the peer reviewers for final approval. The journal reserves the right to edit the texts without altering the article's meaning.
Approval and Editing Phase
Once the article is accepted, the authors must sign the declaration of originality, authorizing the publication and reproduction rights, as well as its inclusion in national or international databases, websites, or electronic platforms (Format). The content of the texts, tables, figures, and images included in the material to be published is the sole responsibility of the authors. Similarly, the article itself is the responsibility of its authors.
Approval and Editing Phase
Once an article is accepted, the authors must sign the declaration of originality, authorizing the rights to publish and reproduce the article and to include it in national or international databases, websites, or electronic platforms (Format). The content of the texts, tables, figures, and images included in the material to be published is the sole responsibility of the authors. Likewise, the article is the responsibility of its authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Committee or the publishing institution.
Layout and Final Editing Phase
The editor, with the design team, lays out the articles, sharing the final version for the authors' prior review and for final publication on the OJS platform.
OPEN ACCESS POLICY
This journal provides free and immediate access to its content, based on the principle of making research freely available to the public, fostering greater exchange and visibility of knowledge. Articles published by the journal will be available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives license.
STANDARDIZED PARAMETERS FOR CITATION
Referencing and citations must follow the Chicago Deusto style guidelines.
PUBLICATION FREQUENCY
TEOREL is published annually (one issue per year). The journal also publishes issues on specific topics, responding to clearly defined trends. The special topic will be announced in a call for papers published on the journal's website (homepage).
STATEMENT OF ETHICAL STANDARDS IN RESEARCH
TEOREL adopts the Code of Ethics and Best Practices for editors of scientific journals established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) on its website http://publicationethics.org/. In accordance with these best practices, the journal ensures the scientific quality of its publications and their appropriate response to the needs of its readers, authors, and reviewers. Any necessary corrections, retractions, and clarifications will be published by the journal editor. Furthermore, the journal publishes its peer review process, outlining the type of arbitration it uses to select submissions and guaranteeing the confidentiality of the evaluation process.
DECLARATION OF CONFLICT OF INTEREST
Authors must submit the Declaration of Originality and Conflict of Interest form along with the article. Additionally, each article must include a concluding paragraph after the conclusions, explicitly stating this declaration. The first page of each article must also include the funding source for the research from which the article was derived.
PLAGIARISM AND SELF-PLAGIARISM
Authors submitting articles to the journal TEOREL must respect and cite the sources from which data, figures, and information were taken in a clear, explicit, and verifiable manner. If non-compliance with this rule is detected during the editorial and peer review process, the article will automatically be rejected for publication. If this situation is detected after publication, a retraction will be issued in a subsequent issue. Authors must guarantee the originality of their articles, and the journal will be vigilant to prevent duplication, plagiarism, or self-plagiarism. Using the UNICHECK platform, the percentage of original content and self-citation will be evaluated. It is important to clarify that, for an article to be considered original or unpublished, it must not exceed 30% of the content taken from other works by the author(s). This process ensures the quality and originality of the articles, stipulating that in cases where misconduct is found, the article will be rejected for publication.
