Top 12 Religious Articles Viewed in 2022

Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, Yaroslav Pririz Photo By: Mnikh&Ipatiy Vashchyshyn, OSBM, CC BY-SA 3.0

Ukraine. The death of Queen Elizabeth. Polarizing politics. And a hit television show based on the life of Jesus. All of these topics factored into what people read this year when consuming religious content.

Below is our top 12 Patheos articles by month in 2022 based on website traffic. To be considered the top article for a month in this list, the article had to be published during that particular month. We have some seemingly timeless intimate relationship articles (such as How Often Should a Married Couple Make Love? and How Often Do Men Need to Have Sex?) that perform well every month even though they were written some time ago. We have excluded those articles from this list and will publish a “Top Articles of All Time” list sometime down the road.

With those caveats, here is a look at the top read articles by month in 2022.

January

Conservative Christians Burning Their Carhartt Gear In The Middle Of Winter

“Last year, Carhartt announced that they were going to require COVID vaccines for all their employees by January 4. They stuck to their guns, and conservatives (presumably many of them Christians) are losing it. Many are calling for a boycott.”

Instructions to Priests from Ukrainian Bishop

“A Bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Church, Yaroslav Pririz, issued instructions to the Priests of his Eparchy of Sambir-Drohobych in western Ukraine. It expresses both love for the faithful and love for Ukraine. It captures the anxiety of the Ukrainian people as they face the onslaught of the Russian army.”

The Bible Passage That Helped Turn Me into a Flaming Liberal

“I didn’t become a Christian until I was in my early twenties. Yet, decades later, I often wonder if I could be persuaded to care about Jesus in the current cultural climate.”

April

Why You Shouldn’t Buy The Good Friday Lie

“Every Good Friday, Christian pastors stand in their pulpits and tell the biggest lie of the Christian faith.”

The Problem is the Leaders: Why the Church is in Shambles

“A recent worldview survey was released from George Barna and Arizona’s Cultural Research Center detailing what many have been saying for years: there is a fundamental issue in the church and it stems from the pulpits.”

The Chosen update: feeding the 5,000, creator Dallas Jenkins on the show’s unorthodox marketing campaign, and more!

“The hit life-of-Jesus series has been shooting its third season in Texas for the past seven weeks, and this week they shot their biggest scene yet: the feeding of the 5,000, which happens to be the only miracle that appears in all four gospels — and in two of them, it kind of happens twice.”

Three Messages from Loki to the World

“I had a small part in a Seiðr oracular ritual at this year’s Mystic South. I was asked to provide priestly aftercare for those who received messages from their Gods and ancestors, and so I expected to help people with grounding, processing, and on a couple of occasions, accepting the messages they were given.”

Is Eminem a Christian? New Song Features Him Praising Jesus

“Rapper Eminem has built a huge following, becoming one of the best-selling artists of all time. Known for his witty, gritty, and explicit commentary and life, pop culture, and even fellow music stars, to many listeners he might seem like an unlikely person to sing the praises of Jesus Christ.”

Queen Elizabeth’s Rainbows – Did Heaven itself commemorate her death?

“A rainbow appeared over Windsor castle today, Queen Elizabeth’s favourite home. A double rainbow also appeared over Buckingham Palace. It seems appropriate somehow. Perhaps the heavens themselves wanted to mark the passing of this amazing woman.”

5 Tips To Keep In Mind When Visiting A Lutheran Church

“When my wife and I first attended a Lutheran service, we were impressed with how formal it was, a far cry from what we were used to in the mainline Protestant denominations we grew up in and in the evangelical congregations we attended in college.”

Jordan Walker Ross stars as Little James in “The Chosen.” Image courtesy of 130 Agency.

November

Why Haven’t You Healed Me?: ‘The Chosen’ Creators and Actors Discuss ‘That’ Scene in Season Three

As the third season of “The Chosen” premieres this weekend in theaters, a pivotal scene in episode two addresses a frequently discussed question of Christian faith—why doesn’t God heal everyone?”

Mary, Did You Know that Everything You Believed is Changing?

““Wait—what?” Mary said when the angel told her about the upcoming virgin birth. The story of the annunciation proves that Christmas is all about deconstructing your religion.”