Spiritus: Peer-Reviewed Pentecostal Theology, Free to Read and to Publish
Most serious Pentecostal scholarship sits behind a paywall. Pneuma and the Journal of Pentecostal Theology, the two flagship titles, are published by Brill and cost accordingly. Spiritus is the exception that matters.
Published by Oral Roberts University, it is peer-reviewed, entirely open access, and charges no article processing fee in either direction: free to read, free to publish. ISSN 2573-6345, two issues a year.
What makes its scope unusual
The journal covers “all disciplines pertaining to Spirit-empowered Christianity”, and it states an explicit preference that few Northern journals make: work from and about the Majority World. Latin America, Africa and Asia are not treated as mission fields to be described, but as places where the theology is being done.
For a Brazilian researcher that is not a courtesy — it is an open door. A study of Brazilian Pentecostal doctrine is precisely what this journal exists to publish.
The hub behind it
Spiritus is one of several journals on ORU’s Digital Showcase, and the cluster is worth knowing as a whole:
- Salubritas (ISSN 2771-1242) — Spirit-empowered counselling, open access. Relevant to anyone working on healing, care or pastoral practice.
- Asian Journal of Pentecostal Studies — the Asian voice, listed elsewhere on this site.
- Pentecost Journal of Theology and Mission and Spirit & Church — partner journals in the same repository.
- Journal of Lanka Bible College — evangelical and Pentecostal perspectives from Sri Lanka.
Searching the repository rather than a single journal returns considerably more, and it is one query instead of five.
How to work it
- Read a whole issue, not one article. Twice-yearly journals are thematically curated; the issue tells you what the field thinks is urgent.
- Track the Majority World pieces. They are the ones least likely to appear in your Google results and most likely to be comparable to Brazil.
- Note the absence of fees if you intend to submit. Many open-access journals are free to read and expensive to publish in. This one is not.
- Pair it with the paid flagships in the library. Read Spiritus for access, cite Pneuma when your institution gives you the database.
Open the journal
Spiritus: ORU Journal of TheologyAll ORU journals
