I'm using Sitecore 8.2 - update 2.

Scenario: I like to list all of the articles sorted by a Publish Date.

Which is the best practice/approach?

1. Sitecore's Publishing Setting: Use Sitecore's OOTB Publishing Setting. I can set the from field. In my rendering, I will sort the items based on item.Publishing.PublishDate.

2. Custom Field: Add a field name 'Publish Date' to the template. Set it as a Date field. After mapping the items to an object, in the IEnumerable, use this field as to Sort.