It’s always helpful for pastors to know what kind of stories their congregants—and peers—are reading and discussing. Christianity Today sets the standard for Christian news and reporting, especially among evangelicals in the United States. The month of August on CT’s website saw just a handful of topics dominate the page views.
Nearly three in ten visits to the Christianity Today website was to either listen to the highly popular Rise and Fall of Mars Hill podcast or read a story that is somehow related to Mars Hill or Mark Driscoll.
Obviously, people are prone to want to read about scandals. Part of it is just human nature—we slow down and crane our necks when we see a car accident on the highway. But that may not be the driver for all of the trending website traffic. Other visitors are likely listening to the podcast as a cautionary tale. They want to learn how it happened to such a large and influential church and learn what safeguards they can put in place so it won’t happen to them.
Many of the same factors come into play with Ravi Zacharias and his ministry (RZIM). After his death last May, a number of investigations began into the famed preacher’s continued sexual harassment and abuse of women who worked for his business ventures. Trying to understand how leaders, who seem so full of integrity, can act in such a sinless and careless way will always draw clicks, but it’s important for pastors to know how to steer those conversations into an understanding that all are flawed, and “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23).
Of course, it's also noteworthy that other stories drew a significant number of views in August—those of COVID-19 and Afghanistan. Both are obviously on the minds of millions of Christians across the United States and the world. A story about how Christians are dealing with the issue of vaccines and their origins was especially popular. Similarly, CT published a story about what Christian aid workers learned living in Afghanistan for a number of years. The high interest in this story indicated that Christians want to hear other Christians describe what they have seen with their own eyes—and not just hear what the general media is reporting (or not).
In addition to these four major topics, a number of other stories were read widely. For instance, a longform story from CT editor Kate Shellnut about the controversy roiling John Piper’s former church, Bethlehem Baptist, was widely read when it ran on August 20th. A tragic story about the death of Thomas McKenzie, a well known Anglican leader was also read by thousands on the website in August.
It’s clear that Christians are drawn to some of the same topics as the general public: tragedy, scandal, corruption, and people behaving badly. As a leader, this might help you acknowledge the draw, and point people toward stories of Christians doing good in the world, reminding them that thousands of churches and tens of thousands of ministers do their jobs every year without a hint of impropriety.
