Melanie Rigney's Blog, page 91
March 23, 2015
Returning Catholics FAQs: About Birth Control
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.
Tell me why if I come back, I’m in trouble if I use artificial birth control.
We are asked to be open to God’s plan for us, whether or not it includes children. Birth control rem...
March 18, 2015
Wednesday’s Woman: St. Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello
The Basics:Born October 2, 1791, in Italy; died March 21, 1858, in Italy; canonized May 19, 2002, by John Paul II; feast day, March 21. Wife, caregiver, woman religious.
The Story:It was an unusual life, certainly not the one Benedetta envisioned for herself. She envisioned a quiet life as a woman religious, but her parents wanted her to get married. When she was twenty, she went along with their wishes and married Giovanni Frassinello. After two years of marriage, they both agreed to be chas...
March 17, 2015
Of Envy, Fear, and Judgment
Note: On Tuesdays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod , owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
I heard a thought-provoking homily recently about envy as an outgrowth of pride, characterized as the mother of all the deadly sins. I hadn’t thought that envy was much of a problem for me… until it was coupled with that judgment thing.
Judgment and envy are at the heart of today’s Gospel reading from John 5. Jesus cures the man who has been sick for thirty-eight...
March 16, 2015
Returning Catholics FAQs: Singlehood and Adoption
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.
I’m single and intend on staying that way. Can I adopt a child and still come back to the Catholic Church?
Yes, single people who are dedicated to raising a child in a positive,...
March 11, 2015
Wednesday’s Woman: St. Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart
The Basics:Born July 15, 1747, in Italy; died March 7, 1770, in Italy; canonized March 19, 1934, by Pope Pius XI; feast day, September 1. Woman religious.
The Story:Born Anna Maria Redi, the oldest daughter in a large Catholic family, this saint attended a Benedictine boarding school between the ages of nine and sixteen. She was considering a vocation with the Benedictines when she felt St. Teresa of Avila expressing the desire for her to become a Discalced Carmelite. Anna Maria entered Carmel...
March 10, 2015
“Not Seven Times, But Seventy-Seven Times”
Note: On Tuesdays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod , owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
“Not seven times but seventy-seven times.”(Matthew 18:22)
In today’s world, we would call a person who showed that kind of forgiveness a doormat, a glutton for punishment, a masochist. “Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me,” the saying goes.
And yet in a very few weeks, we’re going to see that Jesus isn’t just spouting pretty theoretical words here...
March 9, 2015
Returning Catholics FAQs: About Abortion
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.
Why do Catholics oppose abortion even in cases of rape and incest? Can I come back to the Church if I had an abortion?
Rape and incest are heinous crimes. When a woman is violated...
March 4, 2015
Wednesday’s Woman: Blessed Placide Viel
The Basics:Born September 26, 1815, in France; died March 4, 1877, in France; beatified May 6, 1951, by Pius XII; feast day, March 4. Woman religious.
The Story:Have you ever found it hard to live up to someone’s image of your predecessor? It 
often seems that the person who did a job or oversaw a ministry before us was perfect. Consider Placide’s situation. When she was eighteen, she visited a cousin who was among the early followers of Mary Magdalen Postel, founder of theSisters of Christian...
March 3, 2015
Of Redemption
Note: On Tuesdays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod , owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
Ah, redemption.
There are plenty of people in the world who try to be good because it’s the right thing to do. They perform charitable works, do random acts of kindness, treat others with gentleness and kindness we should all attempt to emulate. You don’t have to be a Christian to be good.
There are plenty of faith traditions that believe we can be forgiven and save...
March 2, 2015
Returning Catholics FAQs: About All Those Names
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.
Why do Catholics take a saint’s name at baptism and confirmation?
The baptismal name should, according to the Catechism, “provide a model of charity” or “express a Christian myster...
