March 14th By Travis Frampton A couple of years ago I was flipping through TV channels when something on C-Span caught my attention. Two lawyers were debating whether the Ten Commandments should be posted in federal and state court houses. The debate was lively. Both sides exchanged compelling arguments. But, as I sat there enthralled by their discussion, I thought
Read moreMarch 25th By Emily Meador I long to see you that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen you, that is that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. – Romans 1:11, 12 Broken. Shaken. Lost. 1983-84 was a year to be remembered. Not because of the joy, but because of the pain. At
Read moreMarch 15th By Carolyn Newman Memories of the 1998 Lenten season light the corners of my mind. While living a busy life, I received news that my precious mother was not going to live. As stated in the scripture, I needed for the Lord to hear my cry. Being involved with the sixteenth annual “I Love America” production at Dyess
Read moreMarch 30th By John Hunt The words had waited for the hunger in her to become the silence where they could form. – John O’Donohue “The Annunciation” from Connemara Blues Mary, the mother of Jesus, is typically a subject of the season of Advent and yet, in the scene of the Annunciation as it is imagined by Irish poet and theologian
Read more
By LORETTA FULTON A special place in the hearts of volunteers from Aldersgate United Methodist Church got a little more special during a recent mission trip. A group of 10, including the pastor, Gary Boles, left Abilene on March 3 for Providence Place in San Antonio, the fourth trip for church members to the mission that until 2013 was named
Read more
By LORETTA FULTON In case guests had trouble remembering the name of the honoree at the annual Round Table Scholarship Luncheon, her name was spelled out–with details. By the time Judy Hancock finished descrbing M-I-C–K-E-Y Cassle, the guests in the packed dining room of the Abilene Country Club knew her well. Cassle received the Woman of Virtue Award, a honor
Read more
By DANNY MINTON Growing up one of the most popular games we played was Monopoly. There were times that a game would run for hours, eventually ending with no one winning. The first game we had used wooden houses, hotels, and markers. Later we had one that used plastic houses and hotels, and the markers were changed to metal pieces.
Read more
By LORETTA FULTON When Bob Fink looks at a photo of poet Aimee Nezhukumatathil, he sees St. Francis of Assisi.Not literally, of course. The patron saint of animals and ecology died in 1226. But his spirit lives, and that is evident in some of Nezhukumatathil’s poetry. He also has a well-known prayer attributed to him. “For me,” Fink said in
Read moreIDLE AMERICAN Commentary by Dr. Don Newbury Many Texans–and no doubt some abiding outside our borders–have used the expression for years: “He’ll do to ride the river with.” We give little thought to its origin, but typically it is used to convey highest praise for others in whom we have confidence–whether we’re fording a river, or even if we don’t
Read more
Spirit Of Abilene 