Praying with Saint Augustine by Sara McLaughlin

“This book is powerful. Anyone who prays these prayers from the heart will be changed from the heart.” ― From the foreword by Peter Kreeft, Ph.D.

For years, there have been no books of St. Augustine’s prayers available. Finally, in this treasure trove, you will find select prayers from his works ― some of the most potent prayers ever composed. As you read the innermost thoughts of the greatest Church Father, you will be transported in time and learn how to pray with the heart of a saint. St. Augustine’s timeless words will help you encounter the “Beauty of ancient days, yet ever new” face-to-face and experience the relationship between praying and believing.

These precious gems are uplifting and accessible to all. Covering a range of topics and styles, they include praise and petition for health, docility, forgiveness, restoration, and salvation. You will also find prayers glorifying the Trinity’s attributes, such as wisdom, light, goodness, mercy, and truth, as well as intimate prayers of adoration to the Incarnate Word.

I think that Sara McLaughlin must love Saint Augustine as much as I do, although it never occurred to me to look for a collection of his prayers. She, however, went on the hunt and found that only a few books which were fairly incomplete and out of print. Being a woman after my own heart, she decided to compile one herself.  

She combed through Since St. Augustine's writings since he's is well known for combining prayers with his writing. That's a big job since he was a prolific writer. What she found has been published in a collection of inspirational, beautiful prayers which have been divided into five categories: Praise, Revealing God's Attributes, Adoring the Incarnate Christ, Forgiveness and Salvation, and Petition. Sometimes they are a sentence or two long. Sometimes they cover several pages. 

Of course, the point of prayer is to bring us closer to God.  As I pray my way through the book, I am rediscovering Augustine's honesty, love for God, and deep insight coming through. It informs my own love of God. It carries me closer to knowing both God and myself a little better. This is Augustine's special way, of course, and why I love St. Augustine as an elder brother beckoning me down the road toward the Lord.

I'm so glad that Sara McLaughlin undertook this labor of love so that I can benefit as well. Highly recommended.