This year’s list of top ten articles in our Writing Collectives provide a fascinating snapshot into the issues and topics that were of greatest interest to the Missio Alliance audience this year. These articles were collectively viewed nearly 120,000 times and include both regular members of our Writing Team and also a number of guest contributors from the wider Missio community.

Nearly half of these articles were authored by women, and a number of the topics covered in this list were especially germane to women, such as Amy Abdullah‘s article elevating women through the ages who have an incredible impact on the church and Kris Beckert‘s notable response to John MacArthur’s derisive comments about Beth Moore. This demonstrates how committed the Missio audience is to our high value of comprehensive mutuality and caring for the issues and voices of women.

In addition, the top ten articles featured thoughtful responses to pivotal moments in the church and the world this year, such as Jorge Acevedo‘s balanced reflection on this year’s vote in the United Methodist church regarding the extent of LGBTQ inclusion in the denomination, Mandy Smith‘s sensitive response to the unexpected passing of popular author and speaker Rachel Held Evans, David Fitch’s needed exhortation on how the church can move forward in the aftermath of the scandals at various megachurches, and Rich Villodas‘s nuanced perspective on the “hug seen around the world” by Botham Jean’s brother, Brandt, of Amber Guyger.

The Missio audience also appreciates fresh perspectives about the Bible, as was featured in Derek Vreeland‘s intriguing article on biblical inerrancy (and why he believes it doesn’t work), as well as Wendy Gierhart‘s guidance on studying the Bible, and how we have oversimplified it.

As for our top-read articles of the year by Winfield Bevins and Chris Morton which were collectively viewed more than 63,000 times, the topic for both of these articles was—quite understandably—the church. Both highlighted ways in which the church is thriving; Bevins’s article explained how “liturgy, when rightly appropriated, is one of the best ways for us to make disciples in a postmodern context.” And Morton’s exhorted that “the most thoughtful and prayerful engagement of difficult issues will never get communicated if churches do not operate in expressions that make sense in their context.”

So while many of our most highly-read articles revolved around hot cultural topics, at the same time the Missio audience ultimately cares deeply about the local church and our commitment as the body of Christ to the furtherance of God’s mission. If you missed these articles the first time, it’s never too late to go back and and check them out, as well as all our other top articles for the year:

1. Churches Are Closing. These Four Models Are Thriving by Chris Morton

2. Eight Reasons the Next Generation Craves Ancient Liturgy by Winfield Bevins

3. In the Aftermath of the United Methodist Vote, There Are No Winners by Jorge Acevedo

4. A Pastoral Response to the Hug Seen Around the World by Rich Villodas

5. These Women Played an Enormous Role in Shaping Christianity. Do You Know Their Names? by Amy Davis Abdallah

6. Why Biblical Inerrancy Doesn’t Work by Derek Vreeland

7. When “Go Home” Is Innocent No More by Kris Beckert

8. Grieving for Rachel as Rachel Would Grieve by Mandy Smith

9. Have We Made Bible Study Too Simple? by Wendy Gierhart

10. On Living in a Post-Willow Creek World by David Fitch

Thank you for reading, sharing, and engaging with our articles this year. We look forward to continuing to deliver thoughtful, values-driven, mission-minded content that fosters deeper conversation in the year to come!