Catholic Joy?
Melanie Jean Juneau
April 24, AD2015
12 Comments
Joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit, not a special gift given to a select few; it is simply a by-product of
Redemptive Suffering and the Phony Victim Complex
Melanie Jean Juneau
March 27, AD2015
39 Comments
Genuine, spiritually powerful redemptive suffering does exist as a genuine call from God. However, what most of us experience is far from redemptive, because our
Lent: Experiencing the Reality of Purgatory
Melanie Jean Juneau
February 27, AD2015
79 Comments
The Eastern Orthodox Church designates Lent as a time of prayer for those who have gone before us. I think this observance is an appropriate gesture,
“A Beautiful Work of the Holy Spirit”
Melanie Jean Juneau
January 30, AD2015
33 Comments
Man likes to be in control, especially of the Holy Spirit. Of course, most of us would deny trying to box in the Almighty, because
Stealing God’s Job
Melanie Jean Juneau
January 2, AD2015
9 Comments
If you asked a typical Catholic, “Are you stealing God’s job?”, they would laugh out loud at such a ridiculous question and emphatically deny it. I
The Spiritual Dynamic of Marriage
Melanie Jean Juneau
December 5, AD2014
9 Comments
Do you find yourself waiting secretly for your knight in shining armour to whisk you off your feet so you can live happily ever after?
Living The Pro-Life Blessing
Melanie Jean Juneau
November 10, AD2014
29 Comments
A few years ago when a journalist interviewed me for an article on Mother’s Day for our city’s major paper, she asked me if I
Spiritual Care for Atheists: Compassion Not Condemnation
Melanie Jean Juneau
October 11, AD2014
19 Comments
It is easy to become self-righteous, or defensive, when a Christian feels attacked by atheists. However, indignant arrogant rants that bludgeon others with the ‘truth’
God Reveals – We Respond?
Melanie Jean Juneau
September 12, AD2014
14 Comments
As Christians we are called to listen and respond to God’s direction, because our lives revolve around God. We have no business asking God to
Uniting With Christ Through Our Senses
Melanie Jean Juneau
August 15, AD2014
16 Comments
How do we perceive the Divine and communicate with God as beings who possess both physical and spiritual senses? Some ascetics might try to starve
Finger-pointing: The “Sins” of Pope Francis
Melanie Jean Juneau
July 19, AD2014
127 Comments
I am appalled by commentators and writers who quickly denounce Pope Francis, often misinterpreting or twisting the meaning of his comments by taking them out of
The Fragility of Human Life
Melanie Jean Juneau
July 7, AD2014
6 Comments
A couple of months ago, I realized how fragile human life really is when I almost lost a daughter during childbirth. During labor, she almost bled
Discovering Joy Inspite of Myself
Melanie Jean Juneau
June 28, AD2014
22 Comments
I discovered joy in the most unlikely place, in the midst of suffering. Years ago, joy eluded me. Living in poverty, united with a husband
Family Trauma: Responding With Control or Love
Melanie Jean Juneau
June 20, AD2014
20 Comments
In the past six months, my large family of eleven has been tested by multiple traumas; we have been bombarded with illness, cancer and subsequent
Mystical Union Is Not a Fairytale
Melanie Jean Juneau
May 23, AD2014
10 Comments
Twenty-five years ago, my husband discovered a book at a Trappist monastery that changed our lives entitled “Guidelines For Mystical Prayer” by a British Carmelite nun, Ruth
Is It Truth or Sophistry?
Melanie Jean Juneau
May 19, AD2014
5 Comments
Years ago, I was washing up some pots, just before dinner, when all of a sudden a word popped into my head, seemingly out of
Presence Evangelism
Melanie Jean Juneau
April 30, AD2014
7 Comments
I call the new movement of God Presence Evangelism, because it is quiet, subtle and entirely grassroots. The stars have fallen. The big names have grown old. Society is
Where Do I Stand After Holy Week?
Melanie Jean Juneau
April 25, AD2014
5 Comments
Last week was Holy Week. Churches around the entire globe waited in prayerful vigil, with lights dimmed, all images covered with the congregation in respectful, somber
Living a Holy Life Is Child\’s Play
Melanie Jean Juneau
March 25, AD2014
13 Comments
Just like C.S. Lewis, I was Surprised by Joy. Of course, there are certain serious Catholic bloggers who have a problem with my spirituality. Often traditional,
Accepting Miracles: Embracing Mystery
Melanie Jean Juneau
March 14, AD2014
11 Comments
The modern world heaps scorn on those who have experienced miracles. This cynical attitude simply serves to coerce most legitimate eyewitnesses into silence; only quacks
Saints Are Simply Living the Normal Christian Life
Melanie Jean Juneau
February 24, AD2014
13 Comments
Twenty-five years ago, my husband discovered a book entitled \”Guidelines to Mystical Prayer\” by a British Carmelite nun, Ruth Burrows. That book changed our lives.
Agnes Sanford: A Friend Among the Communion of Saints
Melanie Jean Juneau
February 11, AD2014
17 Comments
I don’t want to argue about the reality of the communion of saints, both the living and the dead. I just want to encourage believers and seekers
Shattered and Reborn: Positive Suffering
Melanie Jean Juneau
January 30, AD2014
8 Comments
I once asked a priest what my life would have been like if I had not experienced suffering, if I had married a well-off dentist,
This is My Calling, This is My Vocation
Melanie Jean Juneau
January 20, AD2014
11 Comments
Mothering a large family is my calling and my vocation. As a result, I am a conundrum: a rather outmoded sort of woman, ridiculed by modern career
