Mona and Auggie
This was such a busy week, I had little time to write about St. Augustine and his mother St. Monica. Here's a little true story about how Mona and Auggie touched my life even as far back as 35 years ago!
When I was 15 years old and newly"born again" (my 2nd conversion) I worried so much about my parent's salvation. I prayed daily for their salvation, left tracts around the house, dragged my Dad to see the Corrie TenBoom movie, the Hiding Place(he fell asleep and snored). I witnessed to my mother pretty much all the time for a few years and even got her to pray the sinner's prayer once (She had been drinking at the time, so I wasn't sure "it took").
A few years later, my Dad was diagnosed with serious heart disease and I became very burdened that he would die without knowing the Lord. Someone from my fellowship told me about a Christian lady named Monica who prayed for her son for 15 years that he would become a Christian and God answered her prayers because her son became a devout and famous believer. That gave me hope as I counted how many years I had been praying and thought "there's still time and hope." No one told me that these two Christians were Catholics and saints in the Church!
My Dad did pass away when I was 28 and I never knew whether he ever made a "commitment to Christ. " Knowing he went to Mass and according to my mother went to confession regularly, I can now say he did make a "commitment to Christ." I just didn't understand at the time the sacramental life of Catholics and therefore assumed he was just "going through the motions " and bound for hell. How was I to judge? He was not a saint but obviously he kept trying, which is what we all continue to do as we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
In retrospect, I now believe that it's partly through the intercession of my late Dad and Mom and Saint Augustine and Monica that I have come back to the Church. What a full circle!
A St. Monica Quote:
"The only thing I ask of you is that you make remembrance of me at the altar of the Lord."
(cf Confessions of St. Augustine)
When I was 15 years old and newly"born again" (my 2nd conversion) I worried so much about my parent's salvation. I prayed daily for their salvation, left tracts around the house, dragged my Dad to see the Corrie TenBoom movie, the Hiding Place(he fell asleep and snored). I witnessed to my mother pretty much all the time for a few years and even got her to pray the sinner's prayer once (She had been drinking at the time, so I wasn't sure "it took").
A few years later, my Dad was diagnosed with serious heart disease and I became very burdened that he would die without knowing the Lord. Someone from my fellowship told me about a Christian lady named Monica who prayed for her son for 15 years that he would become a Christian and God answered her prayers because her son became a devout and famous believer. That gave me hope as I counted how many years I had been praying and thought "there's still time and hope." No one told me that these two Christians were Catholics and saints in the Church!
My Dad did pass away when I was 28 and I never knew whether he ever made a "commitment to Christ. " Knowing he went to Mass and according to my mother went to confession regularly, I can now say he did make a "commitment to Christ." I just didn't understand at the time the sacramental life of Catholics and therefore assumed he was just "going through the motions " and bound for hell. How was I to judge? He was not a saint but obviously he kept trying, which is what we all continue to do as we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.
In retrospect, I now believe that it's partly through the intercession of my late Dad and Mom and Saint Augustine and Monica that I have come back to the Church. What a full circle!
A St. Monica Quote:
"The only thing I ask of you is that you make remembrance of me at the altar of the Lord."
(cf Confessions of St. Augustine)
posted by Russ Rentler, M.D. | 9:30 AM
1 Comments:
Really cool story Russ! Thanks for sharing.
-g-
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