St Monica and Augustine's concubine

[lwest]

I’ve read that St Monica convinced St Augustine to send his concubine away after them being together for 15 years and having a son with him. I can’t help but feel sorry for the girl and I’m having a difficult time reconciling how a saintly woman like St Monica could do such a thing. I know Augustine could never marry the girl because of Roman law but under the Council of Toledo, concubinage was permitted back then. It seems like a very cold thing to do. Does anyone have any insight? Thank you

 

[Tis_Bearself]

1. Saints are humans, they aren’t perfect.
2. St. Augustine was a grown man. Grown men don’t blame their relationship issues on their mothers. Moreover, if he were so grief-stricken, then why did he get another concubine right away after she left? The guy was weak in the area of sex. He was probably better off just stepping away from it entirely.
3. St. Monica may well have seen something negative in the relationship that did not make it into the written record. Alternatively, the woman may have wanted to leave.

 

[lwest]

Thanks for your (name removed by moderator)ut. I have read that St Monica wanted Augustine to marry a Christian but the girl was too young to marry at the time. He’s have to wait 2 years. That’s when he found another mistress. Then he decided to become a priest so the marriage never happened. The concubine promised to remain celibate. That’s not an indication of her entire character but I think it shows some love there. Idk…still having a hard time with this but thank you for responding.