Church History Journal Redesigned

The editors of the journal Church History are giving the prestigious publication a little make over in style and substance to go with its new home at Duke University.

There’s a new dark-blue cover and a new subtitle since the journal was moved to Duke earlier this year after 46 years at the University of Chicago.

The new subtitle, “Studies in Christianity and Culture,” reflects the editors’ hopes of attracting a broader range of religious research, says Elizabeth Clark, a Duke professor and journal co-editor.

“I think we’re widening the net a little bit,” she says. “The phrase ‘church history’ seems stuffy and a little old-fashioned. By adding ‘Christianity and Culture,’ it has a new look.”

Church History began in 1932 as a quarterly journal of the American Society of Church History. It is widely recognized as the journal of record for studying American Protestant history.

But the co-editors wanted to encourage more studies in Roman Catholicism and Third World Christianity, as well as in early Christian and medieval history. And they wanted to attract articles on how religion influences popular culture.