St. Monica, Model of Evangelization
August 27 is the feast of St. Monica , patron saint of mothers and married women. She is a saint I admire so much for her tenacity, patience, and perseverance in prayer for the conversion of her son, St. Augustine. A persistent prayer warrior, Monica never gave up on her son, Augustine, a great sinner, who later became so strongly drawn to the faith that he was eventually canonized, as one of the Church's greatest teachers and philosophers, and was designated a Doctor of the Church. St. Monica is a wonderful model for us to follow today. How many of us have family members who have left the Church? I would guess that most of us have at least one or more relatives who are no longer practicing their faith. A Pew Research Study reports that 10% of all Americans are ex-Catholics. How can we encourage these fallen-away Catholics to return to the faith of their childhood? The most effective ways to positively influence our family members to return to their faith are to pray for th...