Happy Feast of St. Augustine!

Today we celebrate St. Augustine, a bishop and doctor of the Church, and a man whose spiritual journey is one of the most famous and inspiring. For there was a time where St. Augustine’s soul seemed lost beyond saving, but in the end the love of Christ and the heart of his mother won the day. St. Augustine was born in Tagaste, part of the Roman Empire, in the year 354 AD. He was born to a pagan father who was baptized only at the end of his life, and a Catholic mother, St. Monica. From the very beginning of his life his heart was torn in two directions, the worldly path set out by his father, and a life of virtue and devotion set out by his mother. For a time the worldly side of his heart led him to sin. When he went to study in Carthage his great academic success became a point of pride and temptation. He was surrounded by sinful influences and he struggled greatly with temperance and chastity. Even his intellect fell away from the Lord and for nine years he studied and defended Manichaeism. But all was not lost.

St. Monica never ceased to love and pray for her son and husband. She did everything she could to guide them to the Lord. Eventually, empowered by the grace of God which came from her prayers, and with the influence of St. Ambrose, St. Augustine had a moment of clarity and conviction. After his famous repentance in the garden at Milan, St. Augustine became a zealous disciple of Christ and one of the greatest bishops and theologians the Church has ever had! The life of St. Augustine and St. Monica offers us great hope and consolation. We too live in a world where the hearts of so many, including our own loved ones, are torn between the world and the kingdom of God. But we have a mother whose heart is even more loving than St. Monica’s; we have the very heart of Mary Immaculate to take refuge in! Let us then follow the example of St. Monica and the guidance of Our Lady and pray the Rosary for the world, for our families, and for ourselves. So that by the grace of God we may be like St. Augustine and let go of the sin that remains in our heart and instead find our true rest in the Lord. St. Augustine, pray for us!