Call for Papers 2025
February/March Issue:
STRONG BABIES!: The Ethics of Raising Healthy Children
We invite papers on the topic of the ethics of raising healthy children. Particular foci might include: the effects of racism on maternal health and child wellbeing; healthy food and water for children; protecting the mental health of children; church initiatives to support child and parent health.
Deadline for submission of 500 word proposal: December 1, 2024.
Final Papers due January 1, 2025.
Papers and proposals should be sent to Jennifer.Hockenbery@elca.org
June/July Issue:
Summer Book Review Issue:
Have you read (or written) an important book that Lutherans interested in ethics should read? Submit books for review and offers to review to Book Editor William Rodriguez here.
August/September Issue:
Ethics of Marriage and Family on the 500th Anniversary of Katie and Martin’s Wedding
On June 13, 1525, Katharina von Bora and Martin Luther were wed. Their marriage, and the writings that it inspired, transformed European Christian views of marriage, family, and romantic relationships. Proposals and full papers are invited for this issue that will discuss healthy relationships as well as contemporary ethical issues involving marriage, family and romance.
Deadline for submission of 500 word proposal: June 1, 2025.
Final Papers due July 1, 2025.
Papers and proposals should be sent to Jennifer.Hockenbery@elca.org
October/November Issue:
Lutheran responses to the crisis in American higher education.
Many colleges (Lutheran and otherwise) have seen liberal arts departments, especially in the humanities, reduced or closed in the recent years. Other colleges have simply closed. In addition, there have been the “FAFSA debacle,” campus protests, difficult discussions of freedom of speech, and daily news articles suggesting college isn’t worth it. This issue will present essays that discuss how Luther’s admonition to “keep children in school” relates to our duties to our neighbor through the academy in this moment of time.
Deadline for submission of 500-word proposal: August 1, 2025.
Final Papers due September 1, 2025.
Papers and proposals should be sent to Jennifer.Hockenbery@elca.org
December 2025/January 2026 Issue:
Responses to Artificial Intelligence Part 2.
Continuing the conversation started in August of 2024 on the ethics of AI, this issue will continue the conversation of the ethical use of AI in the academy and in the church.
Deadline for submission of 500-word proposal: September 15, 2025.
Final Papers due November 1, 2025.
Papers and proposals should be sent to Jennifer.Hockenbery@elca.org
February/March 2026 Issue:
Ecumenical Conversation and Christian Unity
At the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, this issue invites reports from the World Council of Churches’ Nicaea 2025 Ecumenical Council alongside reflections on the possibility and challenge of Christian unity.
Proposal Deadline: December 1, 2025.
Final Submission of Papers: January 1, 2026.
Papers and proposals should be sent to Jennifer.Hockenbery@elca.org
Articles published in the journal reflect the perspectives and thoughts of their authors and not necessarily the theological, ethical, or social stances of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Please consult the “About JLE” page for a description of our mission and standards for potential contributors. Submissions will be reviewed and accepted at the editor and advisory board’s discretion based on content, relevance, and style. Proposals should be 500 words. Reflective essays should be 1500 word. Articles should be 3000–3,500 words in length unless permission is given otherwise.
Book reviews are also welcome for every issue: Suggestions for book reviews should be sent here.