Monday 29 March 2010

Theology journals to follow

I follow a lot of journals (mainly theology, literature and intellectual history) via RSS and email alerts. Someone recently asked me for a list of the best theology journals to follow – so here's a modified version of the list I gave him:

  • Modern Theology (Wiley-Blackwell – probably my overall favourite journal in recent years)
  • Studies in Christian Ethics (Sage – publishes some of the best articles around; theological ethics is one of the most constructive and exciting areas in current theology – systematic theology often feels rather pale by comparison)
  • International Journal of Systematic Theology (Wiley-Blackwell – you'll always find something good in this predominantly Barthian journal)
  • New Blackfriars (Wiley-Blackwell – because a regular dose of Wittgensteinian Thomism is good for you)
  • Political Theology (Equinox – an outstanding newer journal; this has become one of my favourite publications in the past couple of years)
  • Scottish Journal of Theology (Cambridge UP – another Barthian journal, sometimes eclipsed by IJST in recent years, but still one to follow)
  • Neue Zeitschrift für Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie (de Gruyter – articles in English and German, good for keeping informed about modern European theology)
  • Literature and Theology (Oxford UP – this journal has gotten better and better in recent years; more literary, not so restrictively theoretical in focus)
  • Heythrop Journal (Wiley-Blackwell – I use this journal with moderation, but it's very good when I need a dose of philosophical theology)
  • The Other Journal (Mars Hill – not a prestigious academic journal like the others, but it has filled a real niche; it's fun, provocative, highly contemporary – and free!)
  • Journal of Theological Studies (Oxford UP – I don't often read articles from this journal, but the huge review section is invaluable)
  • Reviews in Religion and Theology (Wiley-Blackwell; a reviews-only journal, extremely useful for getting a broad picture of new developments in theology)
I keep an eye on plenty of other journals too, but these are probably my top recommendations for keeping up with scholarship in theology. If you feel scandalised by any omissions, feel free to correct me in the comments...

20 Comments:

Anonymous said...

Journal of Cultural and Religious Theory. While it might be more focused on contintenal philosophy of religion, it certainly covers many works of 'radical' theology.

Ian Packer said...

'Journal of Religious Ethics' alongside SCE is among the best to keep up with developments in theological ethics as well as significant discussions and debates with moral and political philosophers

Marty said...

Hey Ben,

Do you get hard copies of journals or mainly function via net subscriptions? It's a conundrum with which I wrestle.

Marty.

Ben Myers said...

Hi Marty, personally I never use hard copies anymore — I rely entirely on email alerts and online access (via the library of course: no one can afford personal subscriptions anymore).

I'm actually thinking of getting an ebook reader for the sole purpose of reading journal articles — one of my students suggested this and I think it's a great idea, since I have a habit of downloading articles on my laptop but then forgetting to read them.

Rich Griese said...

Do you know of any RSS for publications on the historical studies on Christianity?

I am interested in Christian history, but an not interested in theology stuff. I know that sounds weird, let me expand. I am not interested in people's view's about gods, or debats about modern theological views, but I am interested in journals that would alert me to developments in the field of the study of Christian history. Sort of like journals that might keep you abreast in the latest developments in the discoveries and developments in the field of Egyptology.

Do you subscribe to any RSS that are strictly Christian history in nature? If so, if you could alert me to or email a list of feeds for christian history journal information.

Cheers!
RichGriese.NET

Guy Davies said...

How about Themelios, now an online journal under the auspices of the Gospel Coalition:

http://www.thegospelcoalition.org/publications

Evan said...

Rich, ASCH has moved its journal, Church History to Cambridge, which will make tracking easier. Cambridge also carries the Journal of Ecclesiastical History.

Jonathan said...

@Exiled Preacher:

Themelios don't seem to have got the idea behind RSS particularly well. Chunking into individual articles (like the rest of the world) would make it more useful.

Rich Griese said...

Exiled Preacher said...
"How about Themelios, now an online journal under the auspices of the Gospel Coalition"

Hey Exciled,

I went to that page, and the first thing I read was this;

"Themelios is an international evangelical theological journal that expounds and defends the historic Christian faith."

Evangelicals are I think almost by definition supernaturalists, and also want to promote particular god views. I am looking for historical journals. Journals that might be published by a university history department, not it's religion department. journals where Christian history is discussed as one would discuss the history of the Vikings, etc...

Cheers!
RichGriese.NET

Marty said...

Dear Ben,

Hey thanks for the suggestion re the eBook reader--that's brilliant!

Blessings,

Marty.

Guy Davies said...

Rich,

I'm afraid you won't find a lot of stuff about Vikings in Themelios.

Terry Wright said...

That's a shame!

Anonymous said...

Surprised you don't mention New Blackfriars. But maybe it's a tad local...

Evan said...

It's up there, Augustinian. And I read Exiled Preacher as responding to Ben's request rather than yours, Rich.

Anonymous said...

Hm. My skim-reading seems to be jumping over all things Dominican. Then I have no supplements: a beautiful list! Reading Studia Theologica will also help you keep up to date with Scandinavian/Nordic work for those who want to. But there's other stuff too there.

Unknown said...

What about Pro Ecclesia? Of course, I'm partial to them because they just did a book symposium dealing with my former theology prof's book, Towards Baptist Catholicity. Nevertheless, I think it's still pretty important.

Unknown said...

Has Harvard Theological Review lost all its prestige?

Ben Myers said...

Yeah Chris, I wondered if someone would mention Harvard Theological Review. I still keep an eye on it (and it still publishes some good stuff) — but in my impression, it's not really as central to the theological discussion as it used to be.

Unknown said...

That makes sense. I'm sometimes left scratching my head as I peruse its contents each quarter.

Incidentally, an essay of yours (“Predestination and Freedom …”) made it into a footnote of mine in a forthcoming essay (July or Oct.) in HTR.

Anonymous said...

Communio: International Catholic Review - www.communio-icr.com

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