A Church on Every Corner? Abilene's Churches Work Together
By: Stetson
Updated: February 24, 2012
If it seems like there's a church on every corner here in Abilene, that may not be far from the truth.
Many people around the Big Country say the number of places of worship makes our community a unique place to live.
"I think it's a great opportunity for those who have attended one church their entire lives to go out and explore other religions," says Eastland resident, Kelly Armstrong.
Abilene is well known for the number of churches the city has. It doesn't matter what your religion is, you will find a church in Abilene that suits your taste.
"What really makes West Texas, not just Abilene, is that people's lives are very heavily influenced by their belief in God," says resident, Carolyn Sandner.
Don Wilson is a pastor for the First Christian Church of Abilene. His church is also part of the Abilene Association of Congregations, a group of about 25 churches.
"Our goal really is to learn about different ministries and agencies in our town," Wilson said.
The group is made up of churches from every denomination. They meet once a month to talk about what's going on in the community and how they can help each other.
"So hopefully this association helps more churches in town know what needs to be supported. What needs are in this town and how we can plug-in and extend that ministry," Wilson said.
Wilson says it's important to them to work together, because it's hard to keep track of what all the other churches are doing, because there are so many of them.
"Cooperation, learning about each other, finding each other, learning about each other is really strong in Abilene," Wilson said.
But how many churches are there in Abilene? We called the officials with the City of Abilene to see if we could find out. It turns out no one keeps track of that number.
A simple search on Google found over 150 churches in the Abilene area.
"I think it's a good thing. It's why we live in this country," Armstrong said.
Kelly Armstong lives in Eastland but commutes to Abilene for work. She thinks the large number of churches, makes Abilene interesting.
"When I'm driving around Abilene and I see a little church that's interesting. It looks old, I wonder about the people that go inside there and what they talk about," says Armstrong.
Carolyn Sandner lives in Abilene for part of the year, and then spends the rest of her time in Austria. She says people here in Abilene are more religious than many of the people she has met in Europe.
"It's very much a part of their life in West Texas I would say," added Sandner.
Everyone seems to agree that Abilene is a unique city, where everyone seems to find their spiritual side.
Many people around the Big Country say the number of places of worship makes our community a unique place to live.
"I think it's a great opportunity for those who have attended one church their entire lives to go out and explore other religions," says Eastland resident, Kelly Armstrong.
Abilene is well known for the number of churches the city has. It doesn't matter what your religion is, you will find a church in Abilene that suits your taste.
"What really makes West Texas, not just Abilene, is that people's lives are very heavily influenced by their belief in God," says resident, Carolyn Sandner.
Don Wilson is a pastor for the First Christian Church of Abilene. His church is also part of the Abilene Association of Congregations, a group of about 25 churches.
"Our goal really is to learn about different ministries and agencies in our town," Wilson said.
The group is made up of churches from every denomination. They meet once a month to talk about what's going on in the community and how they can help each other.
"So hopefully this association helps more churches in town know what needs to be supported. What needs are in this town and how we can plug-in and extend that ministry," Wilson said.
Wilson says it's important to them to work together, because it's hard to keep track of what all the other churches are doing, because there are so many of them.
"Cooperation, learning about each other, finding each other, learning about each other is really strong in Abilene," Wilson said.
But how many churches are there in Abilene? We called the officials with the City of Abilene to see if we could find out. It turns out no one keeps track of that number.
A simple search on Google found over 150 churches in the Abilene area.
"I think it's a good thing. It's why we live in this country," Armstrong said.
Kelly Armstong lives in Eastland but commutes to Abilene for work. She thinks the large number of churches, makes Abilene interesting.
"When I'm driving around Abilene and I see a little church that's interesting. It looks old, I wonder about the people that go inside there and what they talk about," says Armstrong.
Carolyn Sandner lives in Abilene for part of the year, and then spends the rest of her time in Austria. She says people here in Abilene are more religious than many of the people she has met in Europe.
"It's very much a part of their life in West Texas I would say," added Sandner.
Everyone seems to agree that Abilene is a unique city, where everyone seems to find their spiritual side.
