AUTHOR GUIDELINES

Manthano: Journal of Christian Education invites the submission of original scholarly manuscripts that have not been previously published and are not under consideration by any other journal. All submissions are subject to double-blind peer review. By submitting a manuscript, authors confirm that the work is their own, that all co-authors have approved the submission, and that the manuscript complies with the ethical standards outlined in the journal's Publication Ethics.

Language

Manuscripts must be written in English, in accordance with British English conventions following the Oxford English Dictionary. Use -ise and -isation spellings throughout (e.g. organise, contextualisation). Set Microsoft Word to UK English before submission. Abstracts must be provided in both English and Indonesian.

Article Types

Manthano publishes the following types of manuscripts. Original Research articles report novel empirical or theoretical findings and are between 5,000 and 8,000 words. Review Articles provide a comprehensive and critical synthesis of existing literature on a defined topic and are between 4,000 and 6,000 words. Conceptual and Theological Studies present original arguments grounded in biblical, systematic, historical, or practical theology and are between 5,000 and 7,000 words. All word counts exclude the abstract, tables, figures, and reference list.

Manuscript Structure

All manuscripts must follow this structure: Title, Abstract and Keywords, Introduction, Research Method (or Theoretical Framework for non-empirical studies), Results and Discussion, Conclusion, Acknowledgements, and References.

The title must be a maximum of 14 words, written in title case, with no abbreviations. The abstract must not exceed 200 words per language, written in the past tense as a single unstructured paragraph covering Background, Aim, Setting, Methods, Results, and Conclusion. The final element of the abstract is a labelled Contribution statement of no more than 50 words, stating the primary contribution of the manuscript and its relevance to the journal's scope. Keywords must number between five and eight, separated by semicolons.

The Introduction must present the social and scientific value of the study, a review of prior research and the knowledge gap the study addresses, the theoretical or conceptual framework where applicable, and a clear statement of the study aim and objectives in the final paragraph.

The Research Method section must address the study design, research setting, participants and sampling strategy, data collection instruments and procedures, data analysis approach, and ethical considerations. Authors must apply the reporting guideline appropriate to their study design, such as CONSORT for randomised trials, STROBE for observational studies, or COREQ for qualitative research. A completed reporting guideline checklist must be submitted as a supplementary file. For non-empirical manuscripts, this section should describe the theoretical model, analytical framework, or interpretive method used.

The Results and Discussion section must present findings in a logical sequence addressing the study objectives, discuss key findings in relation to prior research and existing knowledge, address the strengths and limitations of the study, and state the implications for practice, policy, or future research.

The Conclusion must answer the research problem directly. It is not a summary of the article. Do not include citations or quotations in this section. Write in narrative form.

Authorship and ORCID

All listed authors must meet standard authorship criteria: substantial contribution to conception or design, or to data acquisition, analysis, or interpretation; drafting or critically revising the manuscript; approving the final version; and accountability for all aspects of the work. Each author is required to hold an active, publicly accessible ORCID iD. Submissions may be returned where ORCID profiles are incomplete or restricted.

Ethics

All research involving human participants requires ethics approval from a recognised Institutional Review Board or ethics committee. Authors must state the name of the ethics committee, the approval or waiver number, the type of informed consent obtained, and the measures taken to ensure data confidentiality. Research must conform to the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. Manuscripts that do not include this information will be returned prior to review.

Declarations

All manuscripts must include the following declarations in the Acknowledgements section, each under its own sub-heading. Competing Interests must disclose any financial or personal relationships that may have influenced the work. Author Contributions must use the CRediT (Contributor Roles Taxonomy) framework to describe each author's specific role. Funding Information must state the full name of the funding agency and the grant number in square brackets, or confirm that no funding was received. A Data Availability Statement must indicate where data supporting the findings can be accessed, or explain why data are not available. An Ethical Considerations statement must confirm ethics approval details as described above. A Disclaimer must state that the views expressed are those of the authors and do not reflect the position of any affiliated institution or funder. Any use of AI-assisted technologies during research or manuscript preparation must be disclosed, naming the specific tool, the purpose of use, and confirming that all content has been reviewed and verified by the authors.

References

References must follow APA 7th edition. A minimum of 20 and a maximum of 60 references are required. Prioritise peer-reviewed journal articles, with preference for sources published within the last 10 years. Classical and foundational sources may be cited where necessary. All DOIs must be verified prior to submission using the CrossRef Simple Text Query tool at apps.crossref.org. References must be managed using Mendeley, Zotero, or an equivalent reference manager and listed in alphabetical order.

Formatting

Manuscripts must be submitted as a Microsoft Word file (.doc or .docx) using 1.5 line spacing, with continuous page and line numbers. Any standard font at 12 pt may be used. Tables and figures must each be introduced by a sentence in the body text, accompanied by a numbered caption, and sourced where applicable. A maximum of seven illustrations is permitted for original research articles.

Similarity

The maximum acceptable similarity index is 20 percent, excluding the reference list. Authors must submit a Turnitin or equivalent similarity report together with the manuscript file.

Submission

Manuscripts must be submitted via the OJS platform at jurnalpak.id/index.php/manthano. Authors must submit two versions: a blinded manuscript with all author names, affiliations, acknowledgements, and self-identifying citations removed, and a full unblinded version submitted as a supplementary file. The editorial office will acknowledge receipt of all submissions and notify authors of the editorial decision following the review process.