Melanie Rigney's Blog, page 83

Trusting in God More Than in Ourselves

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.

Gideon knew precisely who he was: the least of the least in Manasseh. And yet the Lord in Judges 6 chose him to deliver the Israelites from the Midianites, in a situation where the Israelites were so outnumbered there could be no question that the victory belonged to God.

The disciples knew it was impossible for a camel to fit through the eye of...

Returning Catholics FAQs: Unanswered Prayers

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.

I left the Church because I prayed hard and my loved one died anyway. I’m struggling with why to come back if God doesn’t listen to what I want. Where’s the “love” in that?

God d...

In the Blue Zone

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.

The Greek island of Ikaria is one of the world’s “blue zones,” where people live longest.

Copyright Salparadiso via Shutterstock http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-5...

The New York Times a few years ago wrote about this place of 10,000 people and what makes it special. A local doctor cited factors such as staying up and rising late and...

Living the Dream

An occasional series based on stuff that hangs in my room… or my heart.

First, an admission. For most of my life, I wasn’t into affirmations or contemplating quotes from people, famous, infamous, or anonymous. I thought it was more important to find my own way, to set my own course.

That all began to change when I returned to Catholicism after a thirty-plus-year absence. It turned out that, who knew, a lot of those famous sayings actually came from the Bible. And how do you not listen to wisd...

Wednesday’s Woman: St. Radegund

The Basics:Born about 520 in Germany; died about 587 in France; canonized pre-congregation; feast day, August 13. Wife and woman religious.

The Story:The 21st century has no singular claim to violence and political intrigue. Radegund’s father, a king, was killed by one of his brothers, who then went on to doublecross another ruler with whom the brother had allied himself. That other ruler and his brother, Clotaire I, teamed up and defeated Radegund’s uncle.

Marie-Lan Nguyen/Wikimedia Commons...

“Who Will Cross Before You”

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 Joshua who will cross before you, as the Lord promised.” (Deuteronomy 31:3)

And so, Moses didn’t make it to the Promised Land. The Lord had told him that would be the case. He was too old, too worn, simply used up and spent. And yet, in today’s first reading from Deuteronomy, Moses doesn’t wail and complain to God about the unfairness of i...

Returning Catholics FAQs: Hysterectomies and Vasectomies

O n 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.

Jo Ann Snover via Shutterstock

I had a vasectomy or hysterectomy while I was away from the Church. Will they let me back in, or am I condemned to hell no matter what I do now?

F...

One Is Too Many….

If you look closely at the photo, you can see it, one of the compulsions I struggle the most to control. I chew my cuticles.

My successful moments in combatting this nasty habit come when I remember this: Don’t take the first bite. Because, you see, I am lost if I chew that first cuticle. They have to be evened up, and God forbid I carry manicure scissors or an emery board. In the same way, I am lost if I have that first cookie, that first brownie, that first potato chip.

It works the same wa...

Wednesday’s Woman: St. Nonna

The Basics:Born in the fourth century in Turkey; died about 374 in Turkey; canonized pre-congregation; feast day, August 5. Wife and mother.

The Story:If ever there was a mother who had an impact on her family’s faith life, it was Nonna. Raised by Christian parents, she was given in marriage to Gregory of Nazianzus, the follower of a pagan sect. It is said this troubled Nonna greatly, as she grew to love her husband and prayed for his conversion. Then Gregory experienced a dream or vision of...

Saying Yes

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 was the year 30 or so when Peter got out of the boat and walked on water. It didn’t work for long, of course, as he then lacked complete trust in his friend Jesus. That would come later. He would be fearless in his obedience, all the way to his death.

It was 1924 when Helena Kowalska, almost nineteen and nobody special in the eyes of most of t...