Melanie Rigney's Blog, page 59

Wednesday’s Woman: Blessed Maria Dolores Oller Angelats

The Basics:Born September 14, 1869, in Spain; died August 30, 1936, in Spain; beatified September 5, 2015, by Pope Francis; feast day, August 30; woman religious, nurse, and martyr.

The Story:Maria Dolores Oller Angelats, known in religious life as Fidela, was the oldest of four children, born into a family of potters. She was drawn to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Gerona at an early age, but returned home for a few years after her first attempt. Ultimately, she processed her final vows in 190...

Of Mercy, Hope… and Elections

Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me atYour Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.

Less than a month remains of the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. And yet, many of us have been unable to summon up even a modicum of mercy for the major-party U.S. presidential candidates and, by extension, our families and friends who disagree with our choice. That’s the thing about mercy; it sounds so good in theory, and is so difficult to...

Returning Catholics FAQs: Vocations

On Mondays, I answer questions frequently asked by those considering a return to the Catholic Church. How do I know this stuff? I was away for more than 30 years myself, and am the co-author of When They Come Home: Ways to Welcome Returning Catholics , a book for pastors and parish leaders interested in this ministry.

At my parish, we’re always praying for vocations. Why is that? Is the Church that desperate for priests?

In its broadest meaning, accepting your vocation is saying yes to where th...

Wednesday’s Woman: Blessed Maria Theresia Bonzel

The Basics:Born September 17, 1830, in Germany; died February 6, 1905, in Germany; beatified November 10, 2013; feast day, February 6; woman religious.

The Story:Contemplation vs. faith in action through charity. It’s a choice that many of us face; there never seems to be enough time to do justice to both. Maria Theresia, however, found a balance that worked for her and the Lord. She grew up in a relatively wealthy family, living next door to the local Catholic church. She studied with the Ur...

On the Nightstand: November 2016

I’m a bit embarrassed to admit that I’ve never read Corrie ten Boom’s The Hiding Place, the story of how this Dutchwoman, not much younger than me at the time, and her family hid Jewish friends during World War II and of Corrie’s own time in prison for having provided the assistance. Well, that will change this month. I’m drawn to her story at this particular juncture because our world again is in such disharmony and evil seems to be afoot… not limited to any one political party or country....

Friends in Faith: Lisa Mladinich

My Bible study group recently spent time with Proverbs 31:10-31, the woman of worth passage. As I heard my friend Lisa Mladinich speak at the Future with Hope women’s conference in October, I was struck by how she lives those verses. Lisa, author of True Radiance: Finding Grace in the Second Half of Life, positively glowed as she spoke of how God blesses middle-aged women in ways we might secretly consider curses, such as the way our bodies change. Perhaps even more importantly, I saw the s...

All You Holy People…

Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me atYour Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.

We don’t know how many of them there are, all those holy, formally canonized saints of God. More than ten thousand, surely. They came from all walks of life… those ordained or called to the consecrated life; teachers; mothers and fathers; caregivers; the chronically ill; musicians; farmers; one-time heretics, prostitutes, adulterers, and murderer...

Returning Catholics FAQs: About Halloween

On Mondays, I answer questions frequently asked by those considering a return to the Catholic Church. How do I know this stuff? I was away for more than 30 years myself, and am the co-author of When They Come Home: Ways to Welcome Returning Catholics , a book for pastors and parish leaders interested in this ministry.

When I was practicing another religion, I was told Catholics hate Halloween. Now that I’m back, I’m wondering if I’ll get into trouble if I go to a Halloween costume party.

Well,...

Wednesday’s Woman: St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

The Basics:Born July 18, 1880, in France; died November 9, 1906, in France; canonized October 16, 2016, by Francis; feast day, November 8; woman religious and writer.

The Story:It was a short life, but one from which we can learn much about self-examination… and faith. The family moved often in Elizabeth’s early years, until her father’s death when she was seven. She, her younger sister, and mother then settled in Dijon, not far from the Carmelite convent Elizabeth would enter shortly after h...

Starting Small

Note: On Tuesdays and some Sundays, you can find me atYour Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.

Sometimes, it starts small, like a mustard seed or bit of wheat flour.

Jeanne Jugan was forty-seven, with physical ailments and working as a catechism teacher and caregiver, when she saw Anne Chauvin, an elderly, poverty-stricken blind woman with partial paralysis who was alone in the world. Jugan carried Chauvin home to the apartment she rented...