Cantor Monica O’Desky will lead a Hanukkah service Friday, Dec. 7, at Temple Mizpah, 849 Chestnut St. A dinner will begin at 6 p.m., with services to follow at 7. Cost for the dinner is $5. Call 572-3037 for reservations. Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish festival of lights that begins at sundown on the first day, which this year falls
Read morePopular blogger/author Jami Amerine, a 1996 graduate of Abilene Christian University, has a new book just published by Harvest House. The book and blog share the same title: “Sacred Ground, Sticky Floors: How Less-Than-Perfect Parents Can Raise Kids Who are (Kind of ) Great.” Her first book, “Stolen Jesus: An Unconventional Search for the Real Savior,” was published in October
Read moreBy LORETTA FULTON Saturday, Oct. 27, was an ugly day. Eleven people who were worshipping at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue were murdered by a gunman whose hatred of Jews suddenly turned deadly. In Abilene, far from Pittsburgh, there were reminders that total strangers mourned alongside the loved ones of the victims and other Jews in Pittsburgh. Paul Cornelius,
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By MONICA J. O’DESKY I was conducting Torah study in Waco, Texas, when one of the participants received a news flash on his phone. There was a shooting in a synagogue in Pittsburgh. We all stopped to catch our breath for a minute. As details came out, we looked around at each other. There were maybe 15 of us in
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(Editor’s Note: Following are statements from religion leaders about the deadly shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh on Oct. 27. Rob Sellers, retired religion professor at Hardin-Simmons University, is chairman of the board of the Parliament of the World’s Religions. Cliff Stewart, pastor of First Central Presbyterian Church, is president of the Abilene Association of Congregations.) A
Read moreThe annual Carmichael-Walling Lectures, presented by ACU’s Center for the Study of Ancient Religious Texts, will be held Thursday, Nov. 8. Dr. John Fitzgerald (’72 M.A.) of the University of Notre Dame will give two lectures on the theme: “Friends and Drunks: Two Glimpses into the Social History of the Early Christians and Their World.” An expert on early Christianity, Dr.
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By DAN STIVER A recent Barna study of Bible appreciation and usage among Americans (here referring to people in the U.S.) is encouraging (https://www.barna.com/research/state-of-the-bible-2018-seven-top-findings/). It indicates that half of all American people use the Bible, many “give a lot of thought” to it, and many find it helps them to be better people. This is significant in light of reports
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Scott Bader-Saye, acting dean of the Seminary of the Southwest in Austin, will bring an important conversation to Abilene in September. Bader-Saye will lead a conference Sept. 14-15, “Fostering Civil Conversation,” at the Episcopal Church of the Heavenly Rest, 602 Meander St. The conference, which includes dinner on Friday night and breakfast on Saturday morning, is open to the public.
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By JANICE SIX A couple of years ago for Christmas my son and his wife gave me a framed quote from a song by the Avett Brothers. The quote reads, “Always remember there is nothing worth sharing like the love that let us share our name.” Whether speaking of our family name, or referring to our shared name as followers
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Spirit Of Abilene 