# Saint Monica > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Saint_Monica > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Saint_Monica.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Monica > Source revision: 1353570459 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Christian saint (died 387) For the film, see [*Saint Monica* (film)](/source/Saint_Monica_(film)). Saint Monica of Hippo Saint Monica by Benozzo Gozzoli, 1464–65 Born c. 332 Thagaste, Numidia Cirtensis, Western Roman Empire (present-day Souk Ahras, Algeria) Died 387 Ostia, Western Roman Empire Venerated in Catholic Church Anglican Communion Eastern Orthodox Church Lutheranism Oriental Orthodox Church Eastern Catholic Church Canonized Pre-Congregation Major shrine Basilica of Sant'Agostino, Rome, Italy Feast 27 August (Latin Church, Church of England, Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod) 4 May (pre-1969 General Roman Calendar, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Catholic Churches, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Episcopal Church in the United States of America) Patronage Married women; difficult marriages; disappointing children; victims of adultery or unfaithfulness; victims of (verbal) abuse; and conversion of relatives; alcoholics; Berbers,[1] lapsed Catholics; and many places: Manaoag, Pangasinan, Philippines; Don Galo, Parañaque, Philippines; Santa Monica, California, United States; Saint Monica University, Buea, Cameroon; Pinamungajan, Cebu, Philippines; St. Monique Valais, Binangonan, Rizal; Santa Monica Parish Church (Angat), Bulacan; Mexico, Pampanga; Minalin, Pampanga; Sta. Monica Parish Church, Pavia, Iloilo; Sta. Monica Parish Church, Hamtic, Antique; Sta. Monica Parish Church, Panay, Capiz; Sta. Monica Parish Church, Alburquerque, Bohol; Barangay Julugan, Tanza, Cavite **Monica of Hippo** (c. 332 – 387), also written as "Monnica", was an early North African [Christian saint](/source/Saint#Christianity) and the mother of [Saint Augustine](/source/Augustine_of_Hippo). She is remembered and honored in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, albeit on different feast days, for her outstanding [Christian virtues](/source/Seven_virtues), particularly the suffering caused by her husband's [adultery](/source/Adultery), and her prayerful life dedicated to the reformation of her son, who wrote extensively of her pious acts and life with her in his *[Confessions](/source/Confessions_(St._Augustine))*. Popular Christian legends recall Monica weeping every night for her son Augustine. ## Life Monica is most likely to have been born in [Thagaste](/source/Thagaste) (present-day [Souk Ahras](/source/Souk_Ahras), Algeria).[2] She is believed to have been a [Berber](/source/Berbers) on the basis of her name.[3] She was married early in life to Patricius, a [decurion](/source/Decurion_(administrative)) pagan, in Thagaste.[4] Patricius reportedly had a violent temper and appears to have been of dissolute habits; apparently his mother exhibited similar behaviours. Monica's [almsgiving](/source/Alms), deeds and prayer habits annoyed Patricius, but it is said that he always held her in respect.[5] Monica had three children who survived infancy: two sons, Augustine and Navigius, and a daughter, ['Perpetua' of Hippo](/source/'Perpetua'_of_Hippo). Unable to secure baptism for them, she grieved heavily when Augustine fell ill. In her distress she asked Patricius to allow Augustine to be baptized; he agreed, then withdrew this consent when the boy recovered. But Monica's relief at Augustine's recovery turned to anxiety as he misspent his renewed life being wayward and, as he himself says, lazy. He was finally sent to school at [Madauros](/source/Madauros). He was 17 and studying rhetoric in [Carthage](/source/Carthage) when Patricius died.[5] Augustine had become a [Manichaean](/source/Manichaeism) at Carthage. When, upon his return home, he shared his views regarding Manichaeism, Monica drove him away from her table. However, she is also said to have experienced a vision that convinced her to reconcile with him.[5] *Saint Augustine and his mother, Saint Monica,* by [Ary Scheffer](/source/Ary_Scheffer) (painting from 1846) At this time she visited a certain (unnamed) bishop who consoled her with the words, "the child of those tears shall never perish." Monica followed her wayward son to [Rome](/source/Rome), where he had gone secretly; when she arrived he had already gone to [Milan](/source/Milan), but she followed him again. Here she found [Ambrose](/source/Ambrose) and through him she ultimately saw Augustine convert to Christianity after 17 years of resistance. In his book *Confessions*, Augustine wrote of a peculiar practice of his mother in which she "brought to certain oratories, erected in the memory of the saints, offerings of porridge, bread, water and wine."[6] When she moved to Milan, the bishop Ambrose forbade her to use the offering of wine, since "it might be an occasion of gluttony for those who were already given to drink". So, Augustine wrote of her: In place of a basket filled with fruits of the earth, she had learned to bring to the oratories of the martyrs a heart full of purer petitions, and to give all that she could to the poor – so that the communion of the Lord's body might be rightly celebrated in those places where, after the example of his passion, the martyrs had been sacrificed and crowned. — *Confessions* 6.2.2 Monica and her son spent six peaceful months at *Rus Cassiciacum* (present-day [Cassago Brianza](/source/Cassago_Brianza)) after which Augustine was baptized by Ambrose in the church of St John the Baptist at Milan. Monica and Augustine left for Africa and they set out on their journey, stopping at [Civitavecchia](/source/Civitavecchia) and at [Ostia](/source/Ostia_Antica). Here Monica died, and Augustine's grief inspired his *Confessions*. ## Veneration Saint Monica's tomb, [Basilica di Sant'Agostino](/source/Basilica_di_Sant'Agostino), Rome Saint Monica in a landscape by 19th century artist [Alexandre Cabanel](/source/Alexandre_Cabanel) Monica was buried at [Ostia](/source/Ostia_Antica) and at first seems to have been almost forgotten, though her body was removed during the 6th century to a hidden [crypt](/source/Crypt) in the church of [Santa Aurea](/source/Santa_Aurea) in Ostia. Monica was buried near the tomb of [Aurea of Ostia](/source/Aurea_of_Ostia).[7] Her tomb was later transferred to the [Basilica of Sant'Agostino, Rome](/source/Basilica_of_Sant'Agostino%2C_Rome). [Anicius Auchenius Bassus](/source/Anicius_Auchenius_Bassus_(consul_408)) wrote Monica's funerary epitaph, which survived in ancient manuscripts.[7] The actual stone on which it was written was rediscovered in the summer of 1945 in the church of Santa Aurea. The fragment was discovered after two boys were digging a hole to plant a [football](/source/Association_football) post in the courtyard beside Santa Aurea.[8] A translation from [Latin](/source/Latin) by Douglas Boin reads: Here the most virtuous mother of a young man set her ashes, a second light to your merits, Augustine. As a priest, serving the heavenly laws of peace, you taught [or, you teach] the people entrusted to you with your character. A glory greater than the praise of your accomplishments crowns you both – Mother of the Virtues, more fortunate because of her offspring.[7] During the 13th century, however, the cult of Saint Monica began to spread and a feast in her honour was kept on 4 May. In 1430, [Pope Martin V](/source/Pope_Martin_V) ordered that the relics be brought to Rome. Many miracles are said to have occurred on the way, and the [cultus](/source/Cult_(religious_practice)) of Saint Monica was definitely established. Later the [archbishop of Rouen](/source/Roman_Catholic_Archdiocese_of_Rouen), [Guillaume d'Estouteville](/source/Guillaume_d'Estouteville), built a church at Rome in honour of Augustine, the Basilica di Sant'Agostino, and deposited the relics of Saint Monica in a chapel to the left of the high altar. The Office of St. Monica, however, does not seem to have found a place in the [Roman Breviary](/source/Roman_Breviary) before the 16th century. In 1934, in the Dutch city of Utrecht, the order of the 'Zusters Augustinessen van Sint-Monica' was founded, doing social work, offering a shelter for women with unwanted pregnancies or women who were the victims of domestic violence or abuse. The [sisters](/source/Religious_sister_(Catholic)) also started a number of primary schools. In their heyday the order had six convents, in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Sittard, Maastricht, Hilversum and Arnouville on the outskirts of Paris. Since the Hilversum convent, City of God, was closed in 2014, only Utrecht remains as a rest home for the elderly among the sisters, and Casella, a woodland retreat near Hilversum, where young people are still welcome for a meditative sojourn. [Eugene Morahan](/source/Eugene_Morahan), Santa Monica (1935) The city of [Santa Monica, California](/source/Santa_Monica%2C_California), is named after Monica. A legend states that in the 18th century Father [Juan Crespí](/source/Juan_Cresp%C3%AD) named a local dripping spring *Las Lágrimas de Santa Mónica* ("Saint Monica's Tears"; today known as the [Serra Springs](/source/Serra_Springs_(California))) that was reminiscent of the tears that Monica shed over her son's early impiety.[9] As recorded in his diary, however, Crespí actually named the place *San Gregorio*.[9] What is known for certain is that by the 1820s, the name Santa Monica was in use and its first official mention occurred in 1827 in the form of a grazing permit.[9] There is a statue of this saint in Santa Monica's Palisades Park by sculptor [Eugene Morahan](/source/Eugene_Morahan); it was completed in 1934.[10] Monica is honored in the [Church of England](/source/Calendar_of_saints_(Church_of_England)) and in the [Episcopal Church](/source/Calendar_of_saints_(Episcopal_Church)) on 4 May.[11][12] ## In popular culture [Patricia McGerr](/source/Patricia_McGerr) fictionalized her life in the 1964 novel *My Brothers, Remember Monica: A Novel of the Mother of Augustine*.[13] In the 2010 film *[Restless Heart: The Confessions of Saint Augustine](/source/Restless_Heart%3A_The_Confessions_of_Saint_Augustine)*, Saint Monica is portrayed by Italian actress [Monica Guerritore](/source/Monica_Guerritore). In the oratorio *La conversione di Sant'Agostino* (1750) composed by [Johann Adolph Hasse](/source/Johann_Adolph_Hasse) (libretto by [Duchess Maria Antonia of Bavaria](/source/Duchess_Maria_Antonia_of_Bavaria)), Monica's role in the conversion of her son Augustine is dramatized.[14] In his poem "Confessional", [Frank Bidart](/source/Frank_Bidart) compares the relationship between Monica and her son Augustine to the relationship between the poem's speaker and his mother.[15] In "The Angel of Warning", the fifth episode of season 3 of the TV series *[Evil](/source/Evil_(American_TV_series))*, David claims Monica was black, although traditionally portrayed as white in religious art. She is actually believed to have been Berber.[3] In the tenth episode of season 3, he calls on St. Monica while jogging past a demonic apparition of sexual temptation in the guise of his colleague Kristen. He continues to pray for deliverance from temptation and is visited by St. Monica. ## Gallery - [Paolo Uccello](/source/Paolo_Uccello), St Monica and two children praying (1430-1435) - *Marriage of Saint Monica* by Antonio Vivarini, 1441 - [Piero della Francesca](/source/Piero_della_Francesca), Polyptych of St Augustine: St Monica (1460) - [Francesco Botticini](/source/Francesco_Botticini), Saint Monica enthroned with Augustinian nuns (1471) - Follower of Albrecht and Dirk Bouts, Saint Monica (16th c.) - [*Michael Willmann*](/source/Michael_Willmann)*, Saint Monica* (1660-70) National Museum in Wroclaw - Statue of St. Monica on the façade of a former Augustinian church in [Tábor](/source/T%C3%A1bor), Czech Republic, c. 1700 - *The Angel Appears to Saint Monica* by Pietro Maggi, 1714 - Fresco by Simon Benedikt Faistenberger, 1749 - [Alexander Cabanel](/source/Alexandre_Cabanel), Saint Monica in a Landscape (1800s) - [Relic](/source/Relic) in [Saint Augustine Parish Church (Baliwag)](/source/Saint_Augustine_Parish_Church_(Baliwag)) ## References ### Citations 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Falola, Toyin; Jean-Jacques, Daniel (2015). *Africa: An Encyclopedia of Culture and Society [3 Volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Culture and Society*. Pennsylvania: ABC-CLIO. p. 7. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [9781598846669](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/9781598846669). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBrettFentress199771_2-0)** [Brett & Fentress 1997](#CITEREFBrettFentress1997), p. 71. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEPower1999353–354_3-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEPower1999353–354_3-1) [Power 1999](#CITEREFPower1999), pp. 353–354. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["AUGNET : 1029 Augustine's father"](http://www.augnet.org/en/life-of-augustine/growing-up/1029-augustines-father/). *www.augnet.org*. Retrieved 2023-01-24. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-foley_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-foley_5-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-foley_5-2) ["Saint Monica"](https://web.archive.org/web/20200819192451/https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-monica/). *Franciscan Media*. 2016-08-27. Archived from [the original](https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-monica/) on 2020-08-19. Retrieved 2020-06-26. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Confessions 6.2.2 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-ostia_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-ostia_7-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-ostia_7-2) ["Church of Sant'Aurea"](http://www.ostia-antica.org/dict/south/saurea.htm). Ostia-Antica.org. Retrieved March 15, 2011. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBrown2000124_8-0)** [Brown 2000](#CITEREFBrown2000), p. 124. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEScott200417–18_9-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEScott200417–18_9-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEScott200417–18_9-2) [Scott 2004](#CITEREFScott2004), pp. 17–18. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-morahan_10-0)** ["Santa Monica Sculpture"](https://web.archive.org/web/20201007201852/http://you-are-here.com/sculpture/santa_monica.html). You Are Here.com. n.d. Archived from [the original](http://you-are-here.com/sculpture/santa_monica.html) on October 7, 2020. Retrieved March 14, 2011. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-CofECalendar_11-0)** ["The Calendar"](https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/common-worship/churchs-year/calendar). *The Church of England*. Retrieved 2021-03-27. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** [*Lesser Feasts and Fasts 2018*](https://books.google.com/books?id=W3e7DwAAQBAJ). Church Publishing, Inc. 2019-12-01. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-64065-234-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-64065-234-7). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEMcGerr1964_13-0)** [McGerr 1964](#CITEREFMcGerr1964). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTESmither197798_14-0)** [Smither 1977](#CITEREFSmither1977), p. 98. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEBidart1983_15-0)** [Bidart 1983](#CITEREFBidart1983). ### Sources - Bidart, Frank (1983). ["Confessional"](https://www.theparisreview.org/poetry/3046/confessional-frank-bidart). *[The Paris Review](/source/The_Paris_Review)*. - Brett, Michael; Fentress, Elizabeth (1997). *The Berbers*. Wiley-Blackwell. - [Brown, Peter](/source/Peter_Brown_(historian)) (2000). *Augustine of Hippo: A Biography: New Edition with an Epilogue*. Berkeley: University of California Press. - [McGerr, Patricia](/source/Patricia_McGerr) (1964). *My Brothers, Remember Monica: A Novel of the Mother of Augustine*. New York: P. J. Kenedy. - Power, Kim (1999). "Family, Relatives". In Allan D. Fitzgerald (ed.). *Augustine through the ages: an encyclopedia*. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-8028-3843-8](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8028-3843-8). - Scott, Paula A. (2004). *Santa Monica: a history on the edge. Making of America series*. Arcadia. - Smither, Howard E. (1977). [*A History of the Oratorio*](https://books.google.com/books?id=F7vpR97_&pg=PA98). UNC Press. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-0-8078-1274-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8078-1274-7). ### Further reading - [Everett Ferguson](/source/Everett_Ferguson), *[Encyclopedia of Early Christianity](https://books.google.com/books?id=kgRV7QohACcC)*, Taylor & Francis, 1998, p. 776 - Christopher A. Nunn, *Der Bischof und die Asketinnen. Augustins Korrespondenz mit Frauen* [The bishop and the ascetic women. Augustine's correspondence with women]. Jahrbuch für Antike und Christentum. Ergänzungsband Kleine Reihe 18. Münster: Aschendorff, 2024, [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-3-402-10927-4](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-3-402-10927-4), esp. pp. 59–97. - [John J. O'Meara](/source/John_J._O'Meara), *The Young Augustine: The Growth of St. Augustine's Mind up to His Conversion*, London, Longmans, Green and Co., 1954 - Volker Schier and [Corine Schleif](/source/Corine_Schleif), Opening the Geese Book: The Feast of Saint Monica, 2018 [\[1\]](http://geesebook.asu.edu/how.htm) ## External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Saint Monica of Hippo](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Saint_Monica_of_Hippo). - Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). ["St. Monica"](https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Catholic_Encyclopedia_(1913)/St._Monica). *[Catholic Encyclopedia](/source/Catholic_Encyclopedia)*. New York: Robert Appleton Company. - [\[2\]](https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/saints/monica-705) at [EWTN](/source/EWTN) - [Saint Monica](http://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/lots/lots145.htm) at Sacred Texts - [\[3\]](https://listverse.com/2007/10/12/top-10-unusual-patron-saints/) v t e Saints of the Catholic Church Dicastery for the Causes of Saints Stages of canonization: Servant of God → Venerable → Blessed → Saint Virgin Mary Mother of God (Theotokos) Immaculate Conception Perpetual virginity Assumption Marian apparition Titles of Mary Joseph (husband) Anne (mother) Joachim (father) Elizabeth, mother of John the Baptist Zechariah, father of John the Baptist Archangels Gabriel Michael in the Catholic Church Raphael Evangelists Matthew Mark Luke John See also Calendar of saints Four Holy Marshals Fourteen Holy Helpers Great Martyr Martyr of charity Seven Holy Founders of the Servite Order Military saints Athleta Christi Miles Christianus Church Militant Seven Champions Venerated couples Virtuous pagan Catholic Church portal Saints portal v t e Confessors who are Saints of the Catholic Church Dicastery for the Causes of Saints Stages of canonization: Servant of God → Venerable → Blessed → Saint Adomnán Æthelwold of Winchester Albert Chmielowski Albert of Trapani Alberto Hurtado Aldhelm Aloysius Gonzaga Amato Ronconi Anatolius André Bessette Andrew Zorard Angela of Foligno Anselm of Lucca Anthony of Kiev Anthony Zaccaria Antoninus of Florence Artémides Zatti Athanasius Athanasius the Athonite Benedict of Aniane Benedict of Nursia Benedict the Moor Bernardino of Siena Bruno di Segni Bruno of Cologne Camillus de Lellis Carlo Acutis Casimir Cajetan Chariton Charles Borromeo Charles of Sezze Clotilde Conrad of Piacenza Cunigunde of Luxembourg Cuthbert Dominic Dominic Savio Dunstan Earconwald Edmund of Abingdon Edward Egidio Maria of Saint Joseph Eligus Elizabeth of Hungary Eusebius of Vercelli Ferdinand III of Castile Frances of Rome Francis of Assisi Francis Borgia Francis Caracciolo Francis of Paola Frei Galvão Gerard Majella Germain of Paris Gerolamo Emiliani Gianna Beretta Molla Gregory of Tours Gregory Thaumaturgus Guthlac of Crowland Hedwig of Silesia Henry II Homobonus Hosius of Corduba Hugh of Lincoln Humilis of Bisignano Ignatius of Loyola Isidore the Laborer Ivo of Kermartin James of the Marches Jadwiga Jean-Baptiste de La Salle John Bosco John Cantius John Gualbert John of Beverley John of Capistrano John of Matha John of Sahagún John Climacus John Eudes John of God John Vianney Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero José Gregorio Hernández José Maria de Yermo y Parres Józef Bilczewski Józef Sebastian Pelczar Joseph Calasanz Joseph of Cupertino Justus of Lyon Jutta of Kulmsee Juvenal of Narni Lazarus Zographos Liborius of Le Mans Lidwina Lorcán Ua Tuathail Louis IX of France Louis Bertrand Louis de Montfort Ludovico of Casoria Maiolus of Cluny Margaret of Cortona Martin de Porres Martin of Tours Maximus Maurus Michael of Synnada Monica Narcissus of Jerusalem Neot Nicholas Nicholas of Flüe Nicholas of Tolentino Norbert of Xanten Odilo of Cluny Odo of Cluny Pacificus of San Severino Paphnutius Paschal Baylón Paschasius Radbertus Paul I of Constantinople Paul of the Cross Paula of Rome Paulinus of Nola Pelagia Peregrine Laziosi Peter of Alcántara Peter Claver Peter Faber Peter Julian Eymard Peter Nolasco Philip Neri Pier Giorgio Frassati Pietro I Orseolo Pio of Pietrelcina Prosper of Aquitaine Rafael Guízar y Valencia Raphael Kalinowski Raymond of Peñafort Raymond Nonnatus Rita of Cascia Roch Romuald Salonius Salvador of Horta Sergius of Radonezh Simón de Rojas Sylvester Gozzolini Stanislaus Kostka Swithun Theodore the Studite Theophanes Thomas of Villanova Ulrich of Augsburg Vincent de Paul Vincent Ferrer Walstan Wilfrid William of Montevergine Wolfgang of Regensburg Wulfram of Sens Wulfstan Zdislava Berka Zygmunt Gorazdowski Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński Catholic Church portal Saints portal [Portals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents/Portals): - [Saints](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Saints) - [Biography](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Biography) - [Catholicism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Catholicism) Authority control databases International ISNI VIAF GND FAST WorldCat National United States France BnF data Japan Italy Czech Republic Spain Netherlands Chile Israel Artists ULAN People Deutsche Biographie DDB Other IdRef SNAC Yale LUX --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Saint Monica](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Monica) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Monica?action=history)). 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