Melanie Rigney's Blog, page 53
April 11, 2017
Of Going Ahead and Staying Behind
Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
It is a frustrating, agonizing, humbling experience to see family and friends suffer—physically, mentally, emotionally, financially, spiritually—and to know there’s not a whole lot we can do to change the situation. We can pray. We can listen. We can provide money or a listening ear
or transportation to medical appointments. We can make casserol...
April 8, 2017
Laugh Out Loud
An occasional series based on stuff that hangs in my room… or my heart.
Every once in a while, someone will tell me I’m funny. I never quite get that, because I think I’m about the least funny person I know. Fairly intelligent, yes. A good listener, most of the 
time. Reliable and responsible, check. But funny? Please. It’s not something to which I even aspire.
And maybe that’s why this is one of the most difficult affirmations for me. I don’t like snarky comments or teasing, so I don’t laugh...
April 5, 2017
Wednesday’s Woman: Blessed Anne Maugrain
The Basics: Born April 12, 1760, in France; died April 16, 1794, in France; beatified February 19, 1984, by John Paul II; feast day, April 16. Martyr.
The Story: They were called “royalist fanatics,” but generally, such as in the case of Anne Maugrain, it 
appears their true crimes were continuing to worship and refusing to denounce the clergy. Anne, the daughter of a merchant, lived a bit less than 200 miles from the French Revolution’s epicenter in Paris. But by late 1793, Angers was under...
April 4, 2017
Of the Wilderness… and Reminders
Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a poisonous serpent, and set it on a pole; and everyone who is bitten shall look at it and live.” So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and live. (Numbers 21:8-9, NRSVCE)
They didn’t trust him. That’s what it...
April 1, 2017
On the Nightstand: A Life of Being, Having, and Doing Enough
meantime, besides Scripture, I’ll be reading a book a member recommended: Wayne Muller’s A Life of Being, Having, and Doing Enough. I don’t have so much of a problem with the having part, but oh, to have the faith I’m doing enough… and am enough. Muller also wrote Sabbath: Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in Our Busy Lives, which...
Friends in Faith: Molly Kiko
Molly Eschelbach Kiko is great at saying yes to God… and following with a smile where He leads.
Molly, who suffers from a degenerative eye disease that eventually will lead to the loss of nearly
all her sight, said yes to Mileigh, her guide dog and friend who helps her navigate confidently everywhere outside her home, including when she cantors at Mass.
Molly said yes to another friend when he asked her to marry him… and move to Arlington, VA, hundreds of miles from her family in Michigan. A...
March 30, 2017
Author Spotlight: Lori Stanley Roeleveld
Note: In this feature, writer Whitney Hopler profiles women who write about faith. If you are the author of a new book (published within the past six months) and would like to be considered for an interview, please email Melanie.
By Whitney Hopler
What are some of your favorite stories, and how have they inspired you? God has wired us to discover more about him through stories, writes Lori Stanley Roeleveld in her new book Jesus and the Beanstalk 
(Overcoming Your Giants and Living a Fruitful...
March 29, 2017
Wednesday’s Women: Saints Justa and Rufina
The Basics: Born in the late third century in Spain; died circa 287 in Spain; canonized precongregation; feast day, July 19. Sisters, businesswomen, martyrs.
The Story: These sisters, in their late teens or early twenties, had a pottery-making business. They were even more passionate about their faith than about their work (they donated a share of the proceeds to the
poor of Seville), and that would lead to their martyrdom. Justa and Rufina refused to sell their wares for pagan ceremonies, an...
March 28, 2017
“Do You Want to Be Well?”
Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
“Do you want to be well?” Jesus asks the sick man in today’s Gospel reading from John 5. Pretty simple question, right? Pretty obvious answer, right?
But the man’s answer has nothing to do with the question. Instead he provides excuses for the reasons he hasn’t gone to the pool, excuses having to do with a lack of support and consideration.
Yes,...
March 22, 2017
Wednesday’s Woman: St. Darerca
The Basics: Born in the late 4th century in Great Britain; died in the early 5th century in Ireland; canonized pre-congregation; feast day, March 22. Wife and mother.
The Story: Darerca’s brother Patrick may be better known, but he couldn’t hold a candle to her when it came to parenting! It’s believed that Darerca, who married twice had as many as seventeen sons, all of whom became bishops, and that both her daughters also entered religious life. Furthermore, all or nearly all of the children...
