• Food Bank Adding Drive-thru Pantry Three Times a Month

    By Loretta Fulton The Food Bank of West Central Texas is opening a drive-thru food pantry that will be open hours and days that other pantries in town aren’t.  The

    Read more »
  • Heavenly Rest to Dedicate Rebuilt Organ

    By Loretta Fulton After a wait of two years, the newly rebuilt organ at the Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest will be dedicated on Sunday, May 3. The dedication

    Read more »
  • There Are No Routine Plays

    By Glenn Dromgoole (This is the second of three excerpts from the book Parables from the Diamond that I co-authored with Phil Christopher, published in 2009 and now out of

    Read more »
  • One Woman’s Unconditional Kindness

    By Danny Minton Winston Churchill called it “the greatest American Battle of the war.” It would be known in history as “The Battle of the Bulge.” The United States would

    Read more »
  • Enjoy the Chase

    By Glenn Dromgoole (This is the first of three excerpts from the book Parables from the Diamond that I co-authored with Phil Christopher, published in 2009 and now out of

    Read more »
  • Meet Mike Greenfield

    By Loretta Fulton A lot of kids would have gotten burned out on church if they had gone as much as Mike Greenfield did when he was growing up in

    Read more »
  • Silence

    By Jim Nichols Silence is a word that demands an opposite. We each understand what is meant by silence, but we would probably define it as the absence of something.

    Read more »
  • What’s in a Name?

    By Nancy Patrick In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Juliet asks Romeo the title question when she tries to rationalize the relationship between herself, Juliet Capulet, and her lover, Romeo Montague.

    Read more »
  • The Church Without Walls

    By Danny Minton Almost everyone who reads this has probably seen the World War II movie, “The Bridge on the River Kwai.” We can’t resist whistling the song that the

    Read more »
  • Ah, Abilene

    By Glenn Dromgoole A few things I’ve learned after making Abilene my home for 40 years. Maybe you’ll agree. * Someone said “Keep Abilene Boring” and we take that as

    Read more »

HSU Names Director of Spiritual Formation

Shelli Presley has been named Director of Spiritual Formation at Hardin-Simmons University, replacing Travis Craver, who resigned to become vice president of operations at Fat Matt Roofing. Presley has been Associate Pastor Family Freedom Ministry at Beltway Church. The following announcement was sent in email by Hardin-Simmons President Eric Bruntmyer. Shelli Presley “With her passion for spiritual formation and her

Read more

Bill Libby Honored

McMurry University has posted a tribute to Bill Libby, a longtime religion professor who died in January, on its website. Libby, a former Army chaplain, was buried alongside his wife, Amy, at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C. Libby served in the United States Army for 30 years, advancing to the rank of Colonel, and serving soldiers and their families

Read more

Not Just Blood

By JIM NICHOLS During the construction of biology classes for college students, instructors have developed certain patterns. There are areas that need to be addressed in readings, lectures, and discussions because they are agreed upon central concepts of the discipline; somewhere during the semester the topics need consideration. The students’ interest in certain topics may be high or low. Despite

Read more

Where Mats Don’t Welcome

THE IDLE AMERICANCommentary by Dr. Don Newbury Before football coaches have gone any distance in the minefield-laden careers they’ve chosen, they learn that the welcome mat–so warmly extended before their first game–often is jerked away before there’s time to leave a footprint. Finally deciding to accompany his wife to Europe after breaking promises to do so for decades, one old coach

Read more

World Refugee Day Abilene Style

By LORETTA FULTON “Ok, you’re going to get two beans out,” Ella Mansur instructed the group of eager learners circled around the table. They were learning the game of Mancala, with roots in Africa, which made it perfect for demonstrating African culture on World Refugee Day. A local celebration to highlight the culture and traditions of local refugees was held

Read more

The Art of Losing

By NANCY PATRICK Today’s social climate presents many challenges. I’m not sure if the cause for the rise in depression, violence, climate change, suicide, and lethargy has one diagnosis. Some blame much of the dismal atmosphere on COVID. I agree that the two-year pandemic changed our world in some irreversible ways, but I’m not so sure we can blame COVID

Read more
« Older Entries Recent Entries »