Day 15 - Feast of St. Monica

[MariaChristi]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

As we continue our journey, today’s Feast of St. Monica is an encouragement to persevere in prayer. How like our Blessed Mother was the mother of St. Augustine on this earth! Mary stood at the Cross offering herself with her Son for sinners and continues to pray for us. Monica offered her prayers for her son that he might turn from the world, see his need for God and she continued to pray for many years – until at last her son saw and repented of his sins and came to know the “Beauty ever ancient, ever new” of Christ. St. Augustine found the Truth and was able to write for others: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in Thee.” Mary and all the saints continue to pray for us, and we need to pray in union with them to God Who loves us and is working holiness in us – as we persevere.

Today’s Gospel also spurs us on:

Jesus said to his disciples: “Stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come. Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant, whom the master has put in charge of his household to distribute to them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so. Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property. But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is long delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and eat and drink with drunkards, the servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish him severely and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”

Lord we thank you for the gift of Your Holy Spirit continuing to bring us into the fullness of your Truth. In Your Light, we see Light on ourselves and learn sorrow for our sins. Come, Holy Spirit, enable us to know ourselves truly and to repent of our sins. Litany of the Holy Spirit HERE

Lord we thank you for the gift of Mary to be our Mother. We thank you, Mother for your persevering prayers. Ave Maris Stella HERE and Litany of Our Lady HERE