(d.605) Saint Augustine (not to be confused with the son of Saint Monica) was an Italian Benedictine monk who became known as the Apostle of the English. Pope Saint Gregory the Great sent him to England to convert the Anglo-Saxons as the abbot of forty other Benedictine missionaries.

We are indebted and grateful for our predecessors in the Faith and in recovery. Without trailblazers like Saint Augustine or Bill W., we would be left to our own devices. Our own ideas didn’t take us in the right direction. With humility, we turn in gratitude to our predecessors and to our God (Step 3).

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us rid ourselves of every burden and sin that clings to us and persevere in running the race that lies before us” (Hebrews 12:1).

Reflection by Brad Farmer