From Ukraine to Uvalde, The Christian Chronicle’s Top 10 news stories of 2022

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Journalists for The Christian Chronicle traveled across the United States — and around the world — to cover important news during 2022.

Ranking the Top 10 stories of the year is highly subjective.

But these are my choices:

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1. The war in Ukraine

• Why Ukraine matters to Churches of Christ (by Erik Tryggestad)

• A band of brothers drives Ukraine (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine).

• Serving a church in exile (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Cluj-Napoca, Romania).

• Weary travelers find rest, refuge (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Chernivtsi, Ukraine).

• On a long, uncertain journey, a hotel of hope (by Audrey Jackson, reporting from Pabianice, Poland)

• ‘This is our Exodus’ (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Warsaw, Poland)

• ‘We would sing louder than the shelling’ (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Sopot, Poland)

• Where to next? (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Košice, Slovakia)

• Does God love Russians? (by Erik Tryggestad)

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2. Roe v. Wade overturned

• What the Supreme Court’s abortion leak means (by Kenneth Pybus)

• Christians react to Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade (by Audrey Jackson)

• Roe v. Wade overturned: What’s next? (by Audrey Jackson)

• Revisit of ‘due process’ rights led to reversal of Roe (by Kenneth Pybus)

• Two adoptions, two differing views: Christian women reflect on their experiences (by Audrey Jackson)

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3. Mass shootings in Buffalo, Uvalde and beyond

• Buffalo church members help save lives during grocery store shooting (by Gabriel Grant Huff)

• ‘This is wailing, weeping, heartfelt grief. This is what this town is feeling’ (by Audrey Jackson, reporting from Uvalde, Texas)

• In Uvalde, writer found purpose (by Gabriel Grant Huff, reporting from Uvalde, Texas)

• After yet another mass shooting, Tulsa church prays, reflects: Is there a solution? (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Tulsa, Okla.)

• ‘The mass shooting that would end mass shootings’ didn’t (by Bobby Ross Jr.)

• ‘Whether guns kill people or people kill people, something must change’ (by Calvin Cockrell)

• Christians reflect on Fourth of July parade shooting that claimed seven lives (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Highland Park, Ill.)

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4. ‘Where have all the churches gone?’ series

• A final song, a familiar end (by Cheryl Mann Bacon, reporting from Manchester, Tenn.)

• Struggle to save a church inspires an innovative partnership (by Cheryl Mann Bacon, reporting from La Mesa, Calif.)

• ‘Grandmother church’ of Dallas fights for its future (by Cheryl Mann Bacon, reporting from Dallas)

• Better as one: Churches merge (by Cheryl Mann Bacon, reporting from Cincinnati)

• Full list of stories in the special project (by Cheryl Mann Bacon)

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5. COVID-19: In-person worship, events resume

• Amid omicron surge, churches experience struggle and hope (by Calvin Cockrell)

• ‘This is not God’s first pandemic’ (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Austin, Texas)

• Worship in PJs or pews? (by Bobby Ross Jr.)

• Delayed by the pandemic, Alaska’s first statewide lectureship in three years reunites — and reinvigorates — Christians (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Anchorage, Alaska)

• ‘It’s not about bringing people to a building anymore’ (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Fairfax, Va.)

• After two years of pandemic delays, Spanish-speaking teens and 20-somethings welcome big national meeting (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Elgin, Ill.)

• Pandemic and politics challenge an Ohio church (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Marysville, Ohio)

• Mid-Atlantic leaders meet to craft ideas for post-pandemic growth (by Hamil Harris, reporting from College Park, Md.)

• After pandemic, churches strive to reach ‘Next Level Up’ (by Erik Tryggestad, reporting from Atlanta)

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6. Disaster relief in Mayfield, Ky., and elsewhere

• Breaking down barriers — new and old — to help tornado victims (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Mayfield, Ky.)

• After Mayfield tornado, some stories inspire (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Mayfield, Ky.)

• COVID-19 complicates relief efforts (by Audrey Jackson, reporting from Mayfield, Ky.)

• Help floods Florida after Hurricane Ian (by Erik Tryggestad)

• Churches of Christ helping in flood-stricken Appalachia (by Bobby Ross Jr.)

• After Oklahoma tornado, church shelter becomes base of Red Cross operations (by Audrey Jackson, reporting from Idabel, Okla.)

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7. Fred Gray receives presidential honor

• Fred Gray receives Medal of Freedom (by Hamil Harris, reporting from Washington)

• Nashville Christian Institute’s final reunion pays tribute to Fred Gray (by Ted Parks, reporting from Nashville, Tenn.)

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8. ‘Greater Together’ initiative in Nashville

• How five Nashville churches came together (by Bobby Ross Jr.)

• Walk4Water in the rain (by Ted Parks, reporting from Nashville, Tenn.)

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9. Racial unity efforts

• In Georgia county with history of racial violence, Christians seek unity (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Cumming, Ga.)

• Christians gather at an Arkansas church for worship and workshops on diversity (by Audrey Jackson, reporting from Little Rock, Ark.)

• Racial reconciliation and the church (by Bobby Ross Jr.)

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10. Christian colleges, nonprofits face challenges

• Children’s homes across the nation adapt as pandemic deepens staffing concerns (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Mount Dora, Fla.)

• For Christian universities, latest enrollment figures reflect positive and negative trends (by Calvin Cockrell)

• In Texas, CEO leads Christian Care Centers through bankruptcy and sale (by Bobby Ross Jr., reporting from Mesquite, Texas)

• After over a century, Lipscomb’s Austin Center to close (by Cheryl Mann Bacon)

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More top headlines of 2022

What did I miss?

A whole lot, I’m sure.

It’s impossible to encapsulate an entire year’s news into a single Top 10 list.

Some of the glaring omissions from my list include the response of Christians across Great Britain to Queen Elizabeth II’s death, the growth of Churches of Christ in West Africa (as Jerry Mitchell detailed in a firsthand report from Ghana), a preacher in Alabama celebrating 65 years of ministry with the same congregation and the first Lads to Leaders convention in Sin City.

And then there’s my favorite story of the year: a young Christian woman in Arkansas giving a kidney to a stranger — to save the life of a brother in Christ.

Thank you for all your feedback and support throughout 2022. If you’d like to help the Chronicle keep reporting real news that honors God, we’d welcome it. Click here to make a tax-deductible donation.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

BOBBY ROSS JR. is Editor-in-Chief of The Christian Chronicle. Reach him at [email protected].

Filed under: 2022 in review Buffalo churches closing Coronavirus Inside Story International mass shootings Mayfield Kentucky National News pandemic racial unity Roe v. Wade Top Stories tornadoes Ukraine Uvalde year in review