The Seven Last Words of Jesus from the Cross - Part 7: The Seventh Word
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“Nothing is far from God.” St. Monica
I love St. Monica because she gives me hope. She persisted in praying for her son’s conversion for seventeen years. Even when it seemed impossible that her prayers would be answered, she persevered.
Today we celebrate the feast day of St. Augustine, who is St. Monica’s son. Augustine must have kept his mother awake for many nights. He lived an immoral lifestyle. He had a child out of wedlock. He embraced heretical teachings. At one point, his mother, distraught about his lifestyle, was consoled by Bishop Ambrose, who declared, “The son of so many tears could not perish.”
Bishop Ambrose, who would eventually become St. Ambrose, was the answer to St. Monica’s prayers. Augustine was influenced by Bishop Ambrose’s preaching, and the Holy Spirit began to work within him. He finally converted in his early 30s and was baptized by Bishop Ambrose.
Augustine was eventually ordained to the priesthood. Four years later, he became bishop. He tirelessly worked to expose heretical teachings of his day. He went on to become a saint and a doctor of the church. He wrote many important works, with “The Confessions” and “City of God” being his most renowned.
We must thank St. Monica for her perseverance and patience. And just like her, we must not lose hope when God takes His time to answer our prayers. Even if we cannot see it, He is working behind the scenes.
St. Monica is the patron of mothers because of her persistence in prayer.
St. Monica and St. Augustine, pray for us.
Copyright © 2025 Christy Romero. All rights reserved.
My name is Christy Romero and I am a cradle Catholic. I met my husband, Rafael, 46 years ago on a Youth Encounter, and we got married four years later. We have three young adult children who are all happily married, and two grandsons that have stolen our hearts. Even though I have always loved writing, God took me on a different career path. I graduated with a degree in Accounting in 1986, and thirty years ago, I established my practice to help small businesses and individuals with their tax filings. Last year, I decided to retire to spend more time with my growing family, and to dedicate more time to writing. I created a blog to share my meditations ten years ago, and I have a faithful following of family and friends. Now, I feel God urging me to share the Good News of the Church that He established over 2,000 years ago with a larger audience. In the words of St. Teresa of Calcutta: “I am just a little pencil in the hand of a writing God sending a love letter to the world.” You can find more of my writings at https://christysmeditations.blogspot.com/
