Open Access Policy

1. Open Access to Content

Journal of Religious Studies provides immediate open access to all published content, based on the principle that making scholarship freely available to the public fosters a greater global exchange of knowledge. By embracing open access, the journal supports the free flow of ideas in the fields of theology, philosophy of religion, spirituality, interfaith dialogue, and cultural-religious studies.

2. Free Access

This is an open access journal, meaning all content is freely available without charge to users or institutions. Readers are permitted to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of articles without prior permission from the publisher or authors. This open access policy aligns with the principles of the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI) .

By adopting this model, Journal of Religious Studies promotes the unrestricted dissemination of scholarly knowledge, ensuring that research contributions in religious studies are accessible to anyone, anywhere, thereby fostering global academic collaboration and enriching cross-cultural conversations about religion and human values.

Budapest Open Access Initiative

The Budapest Open Access Initiative emphasizes the convergence of scholarly tradition and digital technology to create a public good: free and unrestricted access to peer-reviewed journal literature. This vision allows scholars, educators, students, and the public to engage in a united intellectual conversation without financial or legal barriers.

Removing access barriers accelerates research, enriches education, and promotes dialogue between diverse traditions. For religious studies in particular, this enables wider visibility of scholarship, supports interfaith understanding, and advances reflections on the role of religion in human society.

Strategies for Open Access

• Self-Archiving: Authors are encouraged to deposit their peer-reviewed articles into open electronic archives that comply with the Open Archives Initiative standards.
• Open-Access Journals: Journal of Religious Studies is committed to the open-access model, supported by academic institutions, research foundations, and scholarly communities, ensuring that no financial barriers limit the dissemination of knowledge.

Through these commitments, the journal contributes to building a more inclusive and equitable academic landscape, where knowledge in religious studies is freely available to all, advancing the pursuit of truth and human understanding across traditions and cultures.