By: Brian G. Chilton, PhD | December 30, 2022
2022 has been an exciting year for many reasons. For me, the biggest reason is that this was the year that I finally defended my dissertation and earned my PhD in Theology and Apologetics, a task that took 5 years to complete. For the Bellator Christi Ministries, 2022 has been an exciting year as we have seen massive growth in our viewership, especially with the Bellator Christi Podcast. Additionally, we added new team members, welcomed back team members, and added new roles in the ministry. It takes a village to keep this ministry moving forward. I believe that God has some great things in store for us as we move ahead.
As 2022 draws to a close, we want to reflect on the year as we prepare for the new year ahead. One way that we reflect is to look at the articles that have received the highest number of views for the year. This gives us an idea about what interests you, our readers. So, without further ado, let us look at the Top 20 most-viewed articles of 2022. Unless otherwise noted, I am the author of the articles in question. Other team members will have their names listed beside the article.
20) “Who Wrote the Gospel of Mark?” (-3)
This piece on the Second Gospel’s authorship surprisingly gets a lot of views from year to year. However, the article dropped three spots since last year.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2017/06/12/who-wrote-the-gospel-of-mark/
19) “St. Valentine and Reflections on God’s Love.” (—)
2022 marks the first year that this Valentine’s Day article makes an appearance on the Top 20 list. It certainly feels the love from our readers this year (pun intended).
https://bellatorchristi.com/2017/02/14/st-valentine-and-reflections-on-gods-love/
18) “Who Wrote the Gospel of Matthew?” (—)
Like the previous article, this piece on the authorship of the Gospel of Matthew did not appear on last year’s list. One thing is for sure, our readers have expressed interest in issues concerning biblical authorship in 2022.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2017/06/07/who-wrote-gospel-of-matthew/
17) “Biblical Exegesis vs. Eisegesis: Practicing Good Hermeneutics.” (—)
The 17th-ranked article of the year is also new to this year’s Top 20 list. This article investigates the importance of good biblical interpretation and dissects the difference between exegesis (good interpretation) and eisegesis (bad interpretation).
https://bellatorchristi.com/2014/06/15/biblical-exegesis-vs-eisegesis-practicing-good-hermeneutics/
16) “6 Major Worldviews.” (—)
2022 was a good year for the article entitled “6 Major Worldviews.” Last year, the article came close to making it to the Top 20 but was just shy of the 20th marker. This year, our readers gave this article a good showing, allowing it to enjoy the 16th spot.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2012/11/26/6-major-worldviews/
15) “5 Signs of a False Shepherd.” (+5)
This article came from a heart of concern as numerous false shepherds have invaded the modern church. Our readers noted the importance of the piece, as “5 Signs of a False Shepherd” increased 5 spots on our Top 20 list.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2016/11/27/5-signs-of-a-false-shepherd/
14) “5 Parameters of Genuine Christianity Found in 1 John.” (—)
Interestingly, this year’s list features a host of articles that were not on last year’s Top 20 roster. This article is yet another. The article looks at 5 traits of what constitutes a genuinely Christian worldview as found in 1 John.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2015/10/12/5-parameters-of-genuine-christianity-found-in-1-john/
13) “The Crimson Worm” (Curtis Evelo). (+1)
Our Cowboy Apologist, Curtis Evelo, penned an evergreen article on his very first try. Evergreen articles are those that have staying power and are consistently read by our readers. If you have not yet read “The Crimson Worm,” be sure to do so very soon.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2019/04/16/the-crimson-worm/
12) “The Holiness of God (Lev. 11:44–45).” (=)
“The Holiness of God” continues to hold the 12th spot from last season. This article speaks on an important attribute of God while looking into Leviticus 11:44-45.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2016/05/25/the-holiness-of-god-leviticus-1144-45/
11) “The 7 Core Fundamental Doctrines Required for a Salvific Faith.” (-3)
Certain theological perspectives are critical for genuine Christian faith. This writing investigates 7 critical doctrines of Christianity. This year, the article dropped 3 places, placing it out of the Top 10.
10) “7 Questions the Bible Answers about Miracles.” (=)
Miracles are God’s intervention in creation. This writing looks at 7 answers found in the biblical text concerning God’s divine work of miracles. The article remains at number 10 from last year.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2016/05/09/7-questions-the-bible-answers-about-miracles/
9) “5 Steps to Proper Biblical Interpretation.” (=)
Apparently, our readers were very concerned about biblical interpretation in 2022, and for good reason. This article is the second on hermeneutics in our Top 20 list. It remains steadfast in its 9th spot on our list from last year.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2017/02/21/5-steps-to-proper-biblical-interpretation/
8) “8 Reasons Why the Shroud of Turin Might Be the Authentic Burial Cloth of Jesus.” (+10)
The Shroud of Turin is an incredible artifact that continues to dazzle individuals from every generation. 2022 was a good year for this article—one that offers 8 reasons why the Shroud may be authentic—as it rose an amazing 10 spots!
7) “3 Manifestations of God’s Love.” (-3)
Love is an important attribute of God. Our readers continue to love this article. Although, they did not love it as much as they did last year, as it dropped 3 spots from 2021.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2016/04/21/3-manifestations-of-gods-love/
6) “Ten Divine Attributes of the Messiah.” (-3)
2022 featured a compelling theological study on Christology—the study of Christ—on the Bellator Christi Podcast. Interest continued in the divine attributes of the Messiah, perhaps in part due to the podcast. This article was at one time the most-read article a few years back. It remains atop the Top 10 list even though it dropped 3 spots from its position in our 2021 poll.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2017/12/05/ten-divine-attributes-of-the-messiah/
5) “Voltaire’s Prediction, Home, and Society: Truth or Myth” (Daniel Merritt). (-3)
Dr. Daniel Merritt’s peered into the popular story of Voltaire. Voltaire is said to have made an atheistic prognostication that the Bible would cease being read in 100 years, only to ironically find that his home was later used as a Bible distribution center. But is the story true? Dr. Merritt investigates the story and finds that it is indeed based on historical truth. Dr. Merritt’s work has elevated to the status of evergreen, even though it dropped 3 spots from its 2nd place spot in the 2021 ranking.
4) “Qualities of God’s Mercy (Num. 14:18–19).” (+3)
Divine mercy is another important attribute of God. In a world full of strife, judgment, and division, our readers wanted to learn more about the mercies of God. The topic was so important that this work rose 3 spots from number 7 to number 4.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2016/05/05/qualities-of-gods-mercy-numbers-1418-19/
3) “The Christmas Story in the Gospel of John.” (+8)
One would think that this article would have received most of its readership around Christmastime. However, the viewership for the article spiked since mid-year. The link between the Christmas story and the Gospel of John is compelling. Our readers thought so, too, as this work rose 8 spots from number 11 to number 3 on our 2022 list.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2015/12/24/the-christmas-story-in-the-gospel-of-john/
2) “Why Did Paul Persecute the Christians?” (Michelle Johnson) (—)
Michelle Johnson, Executive VP of Bellator Christi, nearly took the whole list by storm with one of her newest articles. Michelle answered a question submitted to Bellator Christi by one of our subscribers. The questioner asked why Paul felt compelled to persecute the Christians before his conversion. This question resonated with many of our readers as Michelle’s piece soared to the number 2 spot in the very year that it was written. Great job, Michelle!
https://bellatorchristi.com/2022/02/27/why-did-paul-persecute-the-christians/
1) “Family is Your First Ministry.” (=)
Speaking of evergreen articles, the article “Family is Your First Ministry” has remained the most-read article of Bellator Christi Ministries for 3 consecutive years. I wrote this article when I observed that I and other pastors were sacrificing our families for the sake of prestige and honor by others. I argue that our first ministry must be to our families before anyone else.
https://bellatorchristi.com/2019/03/11/family-is-your-first-ministry/
What articles will lead in 2023? Will the articles currently on this list be supplanted with new writings from our contributors? Time will tell. Nonetheless, we will revisit our annual list at the conclusion of 2023 and see which articles you, our readers, most frequently access.
I hope God blesses and keeps you this 2023,
Dr. Brian Chilton
© 2022. BellatorChristi.com.
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