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Melanie Rigney

Melanie Rigney is the author of Brotherhood of Saints and Radical Saints (Franciscan Media). Melanie is also a regular contributor to Living Faith, the Catholic devotional, and writes weekly for Your Daily Tripod, a Catholic blog. She is a member of the Catholic Writers' Guild, Capital Christian Writers, and several other writing groups. She lives in Arlington, Virginia, where she is a member of St. Agnes Catholic Church and is active in the Cursillo movement.

Radical Saints: Jacinta Marto

Melanie Rigney July 9, 2020

Jacinta Marto: Born March 11, 1910, in Portugal | Died February 20, 1920, in Portugal
Canonized May 13, 2017 | Feast Day: February 20

Radical Saints: Teresa of Calcutta

Melanie Rigney July 9, 2020

Born August 26, 1910, in North Macedonia | Died September 5, 1997, in IndiaCanonized September 4, 2016 | Feast Day: September 5 Teresa’s Radical Gift

Praying with the Saints: All Are Welcome

Melanie Rigney June 10, 2020

We love, Scripture says, because God first loved us (see 1 John 4:19). That’s also why praying is so vital—because God’s love melts our chill, sparks our desire, ignites our love.

The plants and flowers in Pietro Perugino's "The Crucifixion with the Virgin, St. John, St. Jerome and St. Mary Magdalene" convey a symbolic message. Perugino used red poppies, violets and a deep-pink mallow to symbolize death, humility and salvation, respectively. The painting is among those on display in "The Flowering of Florence: Botanical Art for the Medici" exhibit at the National Gallery of Art in Washington through May 27. (CNS photo courtesy National Gallery of Art)

Honoring St. Mary Magdalene

Melanie Rigney May 25, 2020

Though she was never known to waver in her support of Jesus, Mary Magdalene’s actions in Jesus’ final days best exemplify her commitment.

Radical Saints: Marianne Cope

Melanie Rigney January 23, 2020

Marianne Cope listened only to God, accepting and caring for people others feared or found distasteful and putting her own health at risk.

Sisterhood of Saints: Thérèse of Lisieux

Melanie Rigney October 28, 2018

When we think of Thérèse of Lisieux, we think of her “Little Way,” the practice of offering up even the most commonplace tasks to God’s glory. But the Little Way came no more easily to its originator than it does to us.

She was just two when, instead of selecting a single item from a doll dressmaking kit as her sister did, Therese grabbed the basket and the remaining contents, saying, “I choose all!”

Sisterhood of Saints: Hildegard of Bingen

Melanie Rigney October 27, 2018

Surely you have heard of Hildegard of Bingen, the medieval mystic, composer, author, poet, and playwright who, in October 2012, became the thirty-fifth Doctor of the Church—and the fourth female Doctor.