Top 10 online stories in 2015

January 7, 2016 | Web First
Virginia A. Hostetler | Web editor

Stories about Mennonite identity, sexuality, politics, and music attracted visitors to the Canadian Mennonite website last year. Here are the top stories, based on the number of page views.

10.  “Being Mennonite 101” featured a young adult who uses light-hearted YouTube videos to educate people about Mennonite beliefs and culture.  About Mennonites of many nationalities and cultural backgrounds, she quips, “It’s awesome, because that just means the food keep getting better!”

9.  “The luthier of la Riviere,” which generated much attention through social media, was a profile of a Mennonite guitar maker in Manitoba. It was part of the occasional series, “The Business of Faith.” Says the luthier, “It’s a wonderful thing to be able to do something you love.”

8.  For a second year in a row, viewers from around the world read and commented on the web-exclusive story, “Mennonite World Conference assembly to meet July 21-26, 2015.” Online commenters from around the world requested information on how they could attend the event, which was held in Pennsylvania, U.S.A.

7. A story posted online in December 2014 got attention early in the following year, when it also appeared in print: “An experiment in sexuality gone wrong.” Written by an American historian, this feature documented the case of American theologian John Howard Yoder, his patterns of sexual misconduct, and the response of church institutions over the years.

6. The feature “Can sex with a pastor be an affair?” described scenarios in which a male pastor’s position can lead to sexual abuse of a woman he relates to. The conclusion: “Because they’re adults, what happened between them gets erroneously labelled an ‘affair.’ In fact what occurred was an abuse of power.”

5.  A young gay Mennonite man came out to his home church, as reported in “Hoping for strength and unity despite disagreements.” This story was part of the year-long series “Voice of the Marginalized,” in the Young Voices section. The stories were written by communications students at Canadian Mennonite University.

4.  “A biblical and better way” took a theological approach to the question of LGBTQ inclusion and called for the church to have a welcoming stance toward gay people, and at the same time it also encouraged celibacy for non-heterosexuals. “Imagine the impact if Mennonites churches were known to be the best places in the world to find love, support and full affirmation of gifts if one is an openly gay, celibate Christian,” wrote author Ron Sider.

3.  “It felt like a big deal—it was so powerful” was a report on the first same-sex marriage openly officiated by pastors in Mennonite Church Canada. The ceremony took place in Osler, Sask., as Mennonites in Canada are in the midst of Being a Faithful Church, a seven-year process of study and conversation about biblical interpretation as it relates to sexuality. The story was posted online on Jan. 6, where it generated much attention, and was printed in the Jan. 19 issue.

2.  In the days after the national election, Canadian Mennonites paid attention to one among them who was appointed to Prime Minister Trudeau’s cabinet. The web-exclusive story “Philpott named new health minister” was posted online on Nov. 4 and viewed for weeks after. While some readers applauded the appointment of Jane Philpott, a respected medical doctor and member of Community Mennonite Church in Stouffville, Ont., and some questioned her position on abortion, given her affiliation with the Liberal Party. 

1.  The feature, “Mennonite Me” garnered the most page views and averaged 6:27 minutes of online reading time. The author, a self-described atheist, wrote, “I may have completely rejected my family’s religion, but somehow the culture—the important bits, the values that have guided and shaped this unique religious group—is inside my bones, mixed into my marrow, not embraced by me but embracing me from the inside out.” The story appeared on the Canadian Mennonite website on April 22 and in the April 27 print edition and got much attention on social media. It generated comments and letters both from readers who identified with the writer’s perspective and from those asserting that someone who does not espouse Mennonite beliefs cannot be called a Mennonite.

Other popular subjects in online stories included and editorial on the Mennonite World Conference assembly experience, an original play about LBGTQ inclusion in the church,  a Mennonite musician who makes new arrangements for old hymns, and Mennonites and their gardens. 

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Comments

Isn't it striking that while several articles on that list strike at the very heart of the gospel and try to undermine it, while not a single one centers on the proclamation of the gospel of salvation to a dying world. Not one. Not even one that stresses the necessity of the church to remain faithful to the inerrant, perfect word of God.

It's a sad reflection on the direction of this magazine and it's readership.

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