By NANCY PATRICK You probably remember a comedian named Jeff Foxworthy whose fame rests on his act that begins, “You know you’re a redneck when…” I have never thought of myself as a redneck, but neither had I realized that I might possess hillbilly blood until the recent Nexflix production Hillbilly Elegy aired. If you watch it, Glenn Close’s character
Read moreIDLE AMERICANCommentary by Dr. Don Newbury I have never read columns as entertaining as those penned by the late Erma Bombeck, who survived cancer surgery, only to be claimed by kidney disease at age 69. Her battle was valiant as she underwent five years of dialysis before ultimately failing to survive transplant surgery that came too late. (Never mind she
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS The cartoon was making a wry attempt at humor. The boy said to his father, “It got dark real early. Why is today the shortest day?” The father’s reply was, “I guess 2020 is finally giving up.” Winter solstice has come and gone recently. This is an event with a long history of meanings. Officially, this marks
Read moreBy DANNY MINTON Garbage sacks stuffed with colorful Christmas paper now protrude from trash dumpsters that line the quiet street. Boxes ripped open the day before from Christmas morning’s excitement now sit piled, ready to be recycled or hauled to the dumpsite. We pack away a few that are colorful and still in good shape until next season. Gifts that
Read moreBy MARIANNE WOOD Oscar Wilde satirized Victorian behavior in his comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest. The chief character, Ernest, who is only Ernest in the city and known as Jack in the country, is obviously neither earnest nor serious. Ditto for the play. Though it is a delight. Reading J.D. Vance’s article, “How I joined the Resistance” in The
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Editor’s Note: To add your church services to this list, email editor@spiritofabilene.com By LORETTA FULTON Expect a sense of deja vu Thursday evening when live streamed and/or televised Christmas Eve services will replace in-person worship at many Abilene churches. When many in-person Easter Sunday services were canceled due to COVID-19, most assumed things would be back to normal by the
Read moreBy JIM McDONALD “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” Galatians 4:4-5 “With all wisdom and understanding, he made
Read moreBy DANNY MINTON About this time last year, my class watched the film “The Star.” It’s an intriguing study that a lawyer did trying to find out what the phenomenon in the universe called the Star of Bethlehem actually was. I’m not necessarily saying his research is without flaw. It’s a topic that will be discussed from now until the
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By LORETTA FULTON Perhaps nothing illustrates the year 2020 like a group of volunteers, all wearing masks, standing in the cold to hand out Christmas packages to families in a drive-through line. Masks and drive-through lines, to avoid close contact, became the norm in 2020, the Year of COVID. As the year progressed, so did the number of cases and
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