"Our hearts are restless, until they rest in you Lord."

Wednesday of Holy Week! Read about what Christ did today and the services we will have tonight at our parish! 🥖 🍲 #lent2024 #miamicatholic

Our Frontline Ministey visited the WOW center, a special place for adults with disabilities. They loved hearing about the life of a firefighter! @wowcentermiami @frontlineministry_miami #miamicatholic

What happened of Tuesday of Holy Week? Source via @ewtnmedia #lent2024

What did Jesus do on Monday of Holy Week? #lent2024 Source: @ewtnmedia

“Palm Sunday tells us that ... it is the cross that is the true tree of life.” - Pope Benedict XVI What do we celebrate today, Palm Sunday ✨ Source: @ewtnmedia #miamicatholic #lent2024

TGIF! Exploring Rome with @frvigoa continues this week 🇮🇹 #RomeingWithVigoa #miamicatgolic

Yesterday our First Communion classes watched a live stations of the cross, just in time before Holy Week! #miamicatholic

March 25, be there!! The Sisters of Life will be leading our parish Mission Night ✨ see you there! #miamicatholic #miamiparishmission

Thank you Cantón family for taking home the vocations chalice this week! #miamicatholic

Let’s talk Holy Week ✨ Make sure to save this post! #miamicatholic #holyweek2024

Join us for an all day retreat open to all parishioners on Saturday, April 6th! Check out our link in bio to register ✨ #miamicatholic

In this Sunday’s Gospel, the word that stands out is Courage. Jesus has the courage to carry His cross and accept God’s will. He may not have desired it. He experienced agony and stress over it. But He accepted God’s will. Through His suffering and cross, we are invited to ask for the courage to carry our crosses. We all have crosses in our lives. Illness, family stresses, wounds from our past hurts, financial difficulties - we all have them. But how are you carrying your cross? We are invited not to complain about our crosses. Not to try to abandon it (we can’t), or run away from it - but to pray for the Holy Spirit to give us courage to accept and carry ours with grace - allowing God to use our crosses to transform us for His glory. But we cannot carry our crosses by ourselves - we are not meant to. Our crosses in life are not meant to harm us - they are meant to transform our hearts, to open them and turn them more towards God. So we need to ask for His help in carrying our crosses and for letting them transform our hearts for His glory and will. Because we WANT eternal life and to be with Him forever. Our crosses are meant to direct us to heaven - not to keep us here. This week, we invite you to pray to the Holy Spirit for help in carrying your cross and for allowing His will to be done through it. For it to soften and turn your heart to Him - because we WANT to be with Jesus forever at the end of our lives. Amen. #sundayhomilynotes #sundayhomily #miamicatholic

Our favorite day of the week has arrived! Here’s another Exploring Rome episode with Fr. Vigoa! #romeingwithvigoa

Calling all young adults!! Join us next week, March 22-24, for our young adult on Lake Placid, FL. Prices will increase tomorrow, so be sure to sign up today. 🚨 We look forward to seeing you soon! #miamicatholic #catholicretreat #youngadultcatholics

Couples date night last week! ✨ We love being able to serve our parishioners and give them a fun and edifying date night! Looking to join us next month? Save the date for April 13th! #miamicatholic #miamicatholiccouples

April 6! Open to all parishioners! #miamicatholic

Thank you Rosa for taking home the vocations chalice this week! #miamicatholic

In this Sunday’s readings we hear about Nicodemus. Nicodemus was among the religious leaders that questioned Jesus. But Nicodemus was special - he was open to the light that Jesus shared. He was open to receiving the good news and to understanding the truth. Sometimes we’re like Nicodemus - saying to the Lord, “I know you’re the truth and the light - but I don’t understand your way.” What is asked of us is to remain faithful, even if we do not understand. Jesus wants us to know that we will ONLY find the truth and salvation in Him. We will not find it by ourselves. We only look up to Jesus for healing, in order to find hope and the light (in other words, we don’t seek that healing from anything worldly - because we know the healing we need and seek can only be found in and from Him). If we have Jesus, we can see, even in the darkness. We have so many periods of darkness in our lives because suffering is part of this life - but we know where we’re going - to Jesus and to eternal life. He will rescue us to life, from death, because we have already been redeemed. When we are carrying our crosses in this life, look to Jesus on the cross. That’s the love letter He has sent us to help keep our sights on His victory for us - eternal life with God. This is why we rejoiced this Sunday, with the priest and deacon wearing pink - because we’re getting closer to the Resurrection. This life is not the end. A future in the Lord’s hands awaits us. #sundayhomilynotes #miamicatholic This week, let us open our minds and hearts to be open to the Lord’s grace - even if we don’t understand it.

Part ✌🏻 of #RomeingWithVigoa @frvigoa

Anyone missing @frvigoa yet? We sure are, but we’re happy to see him take us around Rome! This Friday, we’re enjoining another episode of #RomeingWithVigoa

Parishioner Highlight ✨ We are Jeanette and Al Perez. Born and raised in Miami, we have been married for 31 years and have two wonderful daughters and son-in-law. Because of Al’s military career, we have moved around a lot and have enjoyed connecting with Catholic communities in different parishes. In 2020, we found our way to St. Augustine Church. Actually, we found our way back. We had attended mass here during our teenage years. We may not have realized it then, but this community left a positive impact on us. We love coming to mass and learning from the insightful homilies, and feel so blessed to call St. Augustine’s Parish home now. It’s a very active and welcoming parish. No matter what time we visit, there are two or three ministries or activities going on. We have met such amazing and inspiring men and women here, who are also on this journey to serve. And it’s humbling to see all the different people (children, teens, young and older adults), who are giving their life to Christ in so many different ways. Of the ministries and activities we take part in - such as the Frontline Ministry, Couples Date Night, feeding the homeless, and facilitating a Lenten prayer and reflection group - the St. Augustine Women’s Emmaus Retreat that Jeanette attended last May has impacted us the most. The retreat not only helped strengthen Jeanette’s faith but it also made us realize that God is calling us to learn and do more. This has led us to become more involved and seek opportunities to serve. When we give, we get so much more in return. St. Augustine’s Parish has given us countless blessings. Our faith continues to grow by serving God, and the opportunities here are abundant.

Fr Louis making a guest appearance at one of our CCD classes! Thank you for pouring so love to our community, Father!! #miamicatholic

Thank you Kathleen Rice for taking home the chalice vocations and praying for our community! ✨

In this Sunday’s Gospel, we see Jesus in a state we rarely or never see Him in throughout the New Testament. We see Jesus angry. It may be hard to see Jesus this way when we’re accustomed to seeing Him consistently loving, welcoming, and peaceful. Here we see Him driving merchants out of the temple. Buy why? He didn’t want anyone doing anything there except seeking the love of the Father. They were buying and selling and vying for profit - not praising or praying to God. Jesus drove them out reminding them this is a place of worship, not greed. We know that when Jesus refers to raising the Temple in 3 days, He was referring to His body. Similarly, Jesus invites us to analyze the temple of our hearts, and to invite Him to drive out anything that isn’t His. Anything that isn’t love. In our daily lives, we sometimes look too much for our own benefit and profit, and forget the love of the Lord. We seek too much the things of the world, and not the Will of God. As we continue throughout Lent, invite Jesus to clear out the spaces of our hearts that need His attention, His healing, and to make Him priority. Jesus is always willing to help us - but we need to invite and allow Him to give us His Spirit. Jesus promised us He’ll be with us until the end of time - ready to help us. This week, let us come to Him and invite Him to work on our hearts: Lord, come make us new!

Looking for ways to serve this summer? How about helping a community in need gain access to clean water, forever? ✨Here’s what @bluemissions VP of International Programs and fellow parishioner, Jorge Rodriguez hast to say! Come join us and @frvigoa this June. Email trips@bluemissions.org or check out our link in bio for more details #miamicatholic

#RomeingWithVigoa Where is @frvigoa today? #miamicatholic

Looking for ways to serve? Interested in traveling abroad and working together alongside your parishioners? Come with us this summer to our @bluemissions trip!! Interest link in our bio! @frvigoa #servemiami #miamicatholic

Parishioner Spotlight ✨ We are the Campos Family and have been parishioners at St. Augustine since our daughter’s first communion-about 14 years ago. Being a part of the St. Augustine community is a true gift. There are so many things to love. It is a place where we always feel welcomed. The parish provides so many opportunities to grow in faith and friendship with fellow parishioners. One of our favorite things has been meeting amazing friends of all ages and backgrounds that share a love for Jesus. Our involvement, as a couple, in the Hermanos en la Calle Ministry has strengthened our relationship, our faith, and our hope. Once a month we meet at the parish, and go out with a group of parishioners to give our love to our brothers and sisters living on the streets. This has opened our eyes to the beauty and dignity of every human life. On our first outing we thought we were going to provide food for the homeless. As the night progressed, we realized it was about so much more. Our purpose was not just to nourish the body but to give love to a group of people whom were often invisible to us. We saw them on the streets, but we didn’t really see them. The food is not the priority. It is the tool used to get to know them, to touch them, to hug them, and give love. To really see them as brothers and sisters and to let them know that they are loved. It has been over a year that we are a part of this ministry. With the guidance of our amazing leader, we always receive so much more than what we give on these special nights. #miamicatholic

Our men had an incredible retreat this weekend!! ✨ We’re excited to see the graces they received #miamicatholic

Through this Sunday’s readings, the Lord is asking us for something. And it’s because He plans to give us more than what we sacrifice for Him. We see that in the story of Abraham and Isaac. After years of pain of trying to have a son - and trying consequently to do it his own way, instead of waiting on God - Abraham and Sarah are blessed with their most longed-for blessing, Isaac. But now it seems that God is asking Abraham for Isaac back - to kill Isaac and sacrifice him to God. Abraham demonstrated his willingness to do it. But God did not want Abraham to do it - He was asking for Abraham’s obedience. What’s the connection between this and the Gospel, the Transfiguration account? Abraham was willing to give God His only begotten son - and now God gave us His only begotten Son. God does not spare anything from us - not even His only Son. The world doesn’t understand this. When we have Jesus, we have the source of everything. Seek first the Kingdom of God, and then you’ll have everything. Because we have nothing without Him. We can pursue the whole world and still be left empty. God has redeemed each of us and paid a price for us with His life. And now He’s asking for our life. But not for our loss! For our gain. Because we lose extremely little and gain everything with Jesus. The return on our investment here is exponential. #miamicatholic Keep giving to the Lord, and He will keep multiplying. What do you think he’s asking you to give up, or turn away from today? Pray and invite the Lord to illuminate you.

Keep our @umiamicatholic group in your prayers as they wrap up their retreat today! #miamicatholic #ucatholic

Where is Fr. Vigía today? ✨ #Rome #RomeeeithVigoa #miamicatholics

Basilio & Alison Paneque take home the vocations chalice this week ✨ Thank you for your prayers and service to our community! #miamicatholic

Congratulations to our catechumen on their Rite of Election yesterday at St. Mary’s Cathedral! We’re just a few weeks away from seeing them receive the sacrament of baptism, confirmation, and communion. Please make sure to keep all of them in your prayers! #miamicatholic

Some of our favorite women 🤩 We had such a great day of reflection this past Saturday for our Women of the Parish Ministry! Fr. Louis talked about forgiveness and the crosses we carry (or the crosses we force upon ourselves!). It was a great way to enter the season of lent. #miamicatholic

From Fr. Vigoa’s video, here are a few photos of where St. Monica was buried. Swipe 👉🏽to see her prayer! #miamicatholic

It’s Friday and @frvigoa is back in Rome, this time with a beautiful reflection on St. Monica! Where should father go next? #RomeingWithVigoa✨ #miamicatholic

Yesterday’s Ash Wednesday children’s mass with Fr. Enzo✨

About last night ✨ We had a blast at our Mardi Gras block party!

This Sunday’s readings tell us about the scourge of leprosy in ancient times. Back then, it was incurable and highly contagious - a long and painful illness that required isolation - one of the worst things that could happen to you at the time. A leper was marginalized and separated from everyone and everything they loved. The leper begged Jesus for healing - and his prayer was a statement of faith, with complete confidence that Jesus could heal him. Jesus is filled with compassion for those who suffer and who show faith. It was outrageous that Jesus would touch a leper to heal him. But Jesus sees through what the world sees. Now, the man could go back to his family, his work, his community and to worshipping God and praising His goodness once again. So the word about Jesus gets out, and Jesus can now not get into any town freely, without being mobbed by the crowds begging Him for healing. Do we see what happened? Jesus traded places with the leper. Leprosy is an analogy for the effect of sin on our lives. The great stench of leprosy on the body is like the effect of sin on our souls. We need to bring our sins to Jesus for healing. Lent begins with Ash Wednesday this week. This is an ideal time to bring our sins to Jesus through Confession. We are ALL spiritual lepers. Separated from God by our sins. Every single one of us needs to repent. To call out to Jesus for forgiveness as an act of faith. Because we know that only HE can save us and heal us. #sundayhomilynotes #miamicatholic

Thank you Dominic family for taking the vocations chalice home! We’re grateful for your service and prayers to our community! ✨ #miamicatholic

This week’s saint: St Cecilia✨ Patron saint for musicians. St Cecilia always felt a close call to Christ. Since small, she devoted her life to serving others and loving Christ through whatever situation she was called to. After helping convert many people, the ruler of the time, Almachius, was enraged and decided to murder her in secret to not cause commotion. After his failed attempt to kill her by suffocation in her own home, he ordered to have her beheaded. The men were allowed to try at least three times to behead her, and failed to do so as well. She was let go, but died shortly after. Before her death, she decided to donate all her material goods to the community. Known as a mother to her community, St Cecilia never hesitated to share God’s love to others. How do you feel called to serve others? What can you do this week to share a little of God’s love to someone around you?

Maria & Nicolas Gutierrez with family received the Vocations Chalice on Feb 4. Thank you for praying for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.

This Sunday, as the ABCD campaign begins, we’re reminded of when Saint Paul was on his second journey. Jerusalem fell into trouble, and wrote to St Paul to ask if he’ll ask the new Christian households to take up a collection for their needs - which was ultimately known as the Jerusalem collection. Since the beginning of our church, charitable giving has been part of what we do, to help our brothers and sisters in need. This is what the ABCD invites us to do - to contribute from the resources God has blessed us with, to help others in need. You can tell your priorities in life by what you spend your money on. This is an invitation to Prioritize Jesus - to honor His request to serve others through your resources. Please consider your contribution to the ABCD campaign this week! -Homily Fr Vigoa 2/4/2024

@catholicmiami Help our church continue its mission! See link for more details: https://adomdevelopment.org/abcd/support-abcd/

Saint of the Week: St Agatha ✨ We celebrate her feast day on February 5th. Since young, she offered her entire life to Christ and made vows of celibacy. St. Agatha endured years of torture after declining to marry a prominent ruler of her time. She eventually past away, but remained faithful knowing Christ was with her. Like her, how can we remain faithful in Christ despite the challenges we are faced with?

So grateful for our community ✨Last night’s marriage formation was special! Fr. Vigoa talked about how to have a God-centered marriage. For homework, ask your spouse: What does prioritizing your relationship with God mean to you? What does it mean to you? 👇🏻 #miamicatholic

Thank you to the Rosy Andreu-Vila family for taking the vocations chalice home! #miamicatholic

The question posed in this Sunday’s Gospel is both simple and not so simple: Who is Jesus Christ? We can answer this biblically, or from our hearts and personal knowledge. The Gospel reminds us that demons and evil are completely powerless in the presence of Jesus: Jesus is most powerful; He expels demons and dispels all darkness. But why would Jesus quiet the demon from revealing His identity? The demons’ sin is malice: lack of faith in or love for God - not lack of knowledge. The demons “know” God - they know exactly who He is - reminding us that knowledge is quite simply not enough. What we need to pray to God for is LOVE. For more LOVE of Him and of our neighbors. Love that consumes our hearts and minds and being. Our faith is not based on knowledge; it’s based on love. Love for the person of Jesus, and the love we owe Him and our neighbors, which can only flow from our hearts from true love for and devotion to Him. So this Sunday, ask yourself who Jesus is…to you. Ask for grace in carrying out His greatest commandment - to love Him with all our hearts and minds, so that this love can spill onto our neighbors - even those that are hard to love.

ABCD Campaign begins this week! We appreciate your generosity. Make sure to grab your packet at our church! #abcd #donate

Another week, another Rome tour by @frvigoa ! Have you been here before?

Thank you Ada & Gonzalo Quesada por taking home the vocations chalice! #miamicatholic

This Sunday’s Gospel reminds us that the time to believe in the Gospel, in the Good News, and to convert is now - Jesus came into our world to fulfill this promise. Where do we look to for fulfillment? We probably have already realized the world cannot fulfill us - we will never be fully satiated. Only through Jesus can we attain fulfillment and eternal life. When Jesus was in the desert for 40 days, He was tempted by many things. Food, the world’s riches…but He declined it all because He knew it would never be enough. Only God and a relationship with Him can fulfill us. Simon, Peter and the Apostles were going about their worldly business when they encountered Jesus. But when Jesus called them, they KNEW something about Him was powerful and attractive - they felt the power of the Holy Spirit. And so they abandoned everything to follow Jesus. Jesus calls us, too. He invites us to follow Him, to encounter Him in our lives today. He invites us to receive Him in the Eucharist, and to be fulfilled by Him, so that we can overflow His love into others and reflect Him to others. The light of Jesus will always shine and triumph over death and over darkness. But how can we overcome our fears in order to preach Jesus in our own realities? Are our lives a reflection of what we believe? Do we forgive? Do we transmit love to others? If you don’t think your life today reflects Jesus, the good news is that we’re invited to make that change today. Jesus will always forgive and welcome us - it’s never too late to turn your heart to Him. He calls each of us by name. Ask Him to receive and transform you, and to place in you a new heart - for His will. #sundayhomilynotes

Explore Rome with Fr Vigoa, part II ✨ Where is he this week? #explorerome

Parishioner Highlight ✨ We are Sara and Lenny Gonzalez and honestly can not say how many years we have been “official” parishioners of St Augustine’s. We can say that we attended Saint Augustine while we were dating; we were married here in 1996 and have been involved in ministry since 2007 (Matrimonios en Victoria). You could say that St Augustine has always been our home . Our favorite thing about our St. Augustine community is that the community is so well rounded. We love to see people and couples of all ages share and live the Catholic Faith. It is beautiful to see this blend of generations and cultures come together and celebrate Jesus Christ, not only on Sundays, but everyday. Saint Augustine’s dedication to minister to the vocation of Holy Matrimony, in our opinion, is the most impactful ministry Saint Augustine has. We are blessed to have participated in and served in the various ministries that promote, educate, and evangelize the Holy Sacrament of Marriage. Martimoniso en Victoria, Fully Engaged, Transformed in Love, Couples Date Nights and Marriage Formation Nights. We are so blessed to belong to a parish that, among other wonderful ministries and charisms, focuses and provides so much for all couples in their various stages of their relationships. “As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” Joshua 24:15

There are people who believe that following God will make us unhappy. That feel that if we believe in God, we lose our autonomy. These same people view us Catholics as people who surrendered our freedom. But what is the truth? If look back at all the readings from Sunday, we realize that Christ seeks a relationship with us. We Catholics believe that every reading we read at mass call us for a deeper relationship with Christ . These words encourage us to love and invite us to a friendly and loving relationship with our Lord. We invite you today to think about your relationship with the Lord. Is it a relationship that is total, absolute and free? Or do you currently struggle feeling tied or limited? Wherever you are in your journey, ask Christ to show you the truth of his love for you.

The Hartlings take home the vocations chalice this week 🤍 Thank you for your prayers and service to our community! #miamicatholic

Message from our pastor! We’re excited to have Fr. Louis serve our parish! #miamicatholic

We welcome Fr. Louis to our parish!! Let’s get to know him: Fr. Louis Merosne was born in Haiti and grew up in Boston, MA. After graduating from the Boston Latin School he studied Philosophy, French, and Theology at the Franciscan University of Steubenville from 2002 to 2007 where he obtained a Bachelor’s and a Master’s. As a missionary, he helped establish Haiti180 in the south of Haiti. In 2010, he responded to the call to definitively return to his homeland in order to serve the poor and the local church. In 2011, he was ordained a priest in the Diocese of Anse-à-Veau and Miragoâne. Father Louis continues to preach the Gospel and to serve the poor in Haiti and abroad. Currently, he is the pastor of the Cathedral of Saint Anne in Anse-à-Veau, Haiti. He also serves as episcopal vicar on his bishop’s council. He is a board member of Life Teen International and other mission oriented organizations. He is the Executive Director of the Francis Integral Development Foundation, Corp, a New York registered foundation promoting a Strategic Plan of Integral Human Development of Haiti through a Revival of National Production and Capacity Building. He is an international speaker who ministers at youth and adult conferences as well as at parish missions. He is passionate about knowing Jesus and making Him known. He loves Mary and the Church. He founded Mission to The Beloved, a US not-for-profit organization with the mission of preaching the Gospel and serving the poor, especially in Haiti. For more information, visit: missiontothebeloved.com

Follow along @frvigoa on his travels to Rome this year!! #RomeTravels

Thank you Nancy & Chiqui Rodriguez for praying for vocations this week ✨#miamicatholic

Today’s Gospel account is about vision. What captures our attention? Those experiences that change our perspective and attitude. When we “see” a world full of war, disruption and despair - we need to change our perspective to see things through our Father’s eyes. During Jesus’ time, people were facing destruction, despair and hopelessness, as well. Returning to a Jerusalem that was left in shambles. They were living in darkness. God sent us His only Son, Jesus - the Messiah - into this very broken world to bring hope and LIGHT to people of all opinions and perspectives, all over the world. The Wise Men understood Jesus was the fruition of what God and the scriptures promised - they came to worship, to adore and to see this new promise. And they received as a gift the message of hope, to return to the world from which they came. Even when our world is dark - God is at work. In these times in which we are too attached to our devices - we all need a change of perspective. The Wise Men and mystics saw the star and sought out to find Jesus. They came to adore Him and bring Him gifts - but they also left with a gift from Jesus: the gift of renewed hope of salvation, and purpose. What do we receive and what to we GIVE at Mass each Sunday? Are we participating in the Divine act of giving and receiving - beyond just checking off the Sunday “obligation”? Acknowledging that we are overstimulated in today’s world, may the Light of the World (Jesus) fill our hearts and minds with God’s vision for our life. So that we can trust in His gift of hope and vision. Can you ask Him to help you see things from His perspective, and to change your mind and heart to be renewed with hope this new year?

“They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” Mt 2:11 Happy Epiphany Sunday ✨

Thank you to everyone who came to celebrate Mass and celebrate John-Paul Asis Lopez’s life! It was beautiful to see how a boy so small can love so greatly and impact so many of us in such a short time. As he prays for us in heaven, we invite you to keep praying with him and for his family, his parents Michelle & Asis, and his friends. We are so grateful for you, dear parishioners!

Hello! We are George & Pilar! ✨ We were introduced to St. Augustine Church by our friend Raul Mas. As we started coming to Sunday 10am Mass, we perceived a spirituality which left us longing for more. And as we attended other Mass times, we also saw the same huge crowd of young people and families which might have been drawn by the same Spirit: the friendly community, the beauty of the Altar that enraptures your eyes, the reverence shown to God which transports you to the faithfulness in the Old Testament, the numerous opportunities offered to strengthen your faith throughout the week. Being part of St. Augustine’s community, one senses that you are not alone: there is a shepherding going on that attracts even the lukewarm. We regularly participate in the Couples Day Night – where you make new friends while having lots of fun! George enjoys the men’s group Egeiro and Pilar, the Women of the Parish. We took part in the Parish Bible Study Group, which opened our eyes to new ways of understanding the Bible and its relevance to our lives and society as a whole.

Holy hour of adoration is back! Join us Sundays 3-4PM. #miamicatholic @frvigoa

New year, new way to dive deeper into our faith! Sign up for the Bible timeline study starting soon. Follow the link in our bio to select the day/time that works best for you! #miamicatholic

This Sunday we celebrated the Feast of the Holy Family. Families this Christmas may have experienced a range of emotions: not just joy at being together, but perhaps also pain and sorrow from the loss of a loved one, disease, other disappointments and tense relationships. We may be tempted to think the Holy Family had it easy with the Son of God at home. But they also experienced rejection, fear and pain. Mary was told that a “knife would pierce her heart” - foreshadowing His crucifixion. A Holy Family like the one were invited to be reflects kindness, patience, compassion, and forgiveness every time a mistake is made. We are invited to try to be Holy - even in the midst of our imperfections, sometimes dysfunctions and flaws. We can pray and come to Mass together - inviting Christ to be an active part of our family life - in the good times and in the difficult. What is one thing you can do today to help make your family and partnership a Holy one? On this feast of the Holy Family, may we come to know the protection and love that Mary, Joseph and Jesus have for us. This new year, lets make holiness a priority so that we may experience God’s blessings in abundance.

This week, on this last day of 2023, we highlight our patron saint, St. Augustine of Hippo ✨ Most may know his story: a young man who led a worldly life to then convert to Catholicism and ultimately became a bishop. His mother, St Monica, is attributed to his conversion thanks to her prayers and faith. On this day, many of us begin to plan out the new year with hefty goals and achievements. We encourage you, however, to think on where is God asking you to grow in faith? Like St Augustine, where is he calling you to deeper trust and surrender? What can you seek freedom FROM to have freedom FOR? Instead of goals of travel or work, how about looking for ways to find Christ in our lives? St Augustine teaches us that none of us are too far away from God to be renewed in mind and spirit. Make 2024 a year of walking closer with Christ!

A great light in the midst of the darkness of grief this week, has been our faith community. Words cannot express our gratitude to our family at St Augustine. John-Paul was “our parish baby” being passed from one person’s arms to another, receiving constant love and smiles. His journey to heaven was paved with prayer and love, that each of you contributed to. His unique mission was fulfilled on earth and now he will be busy interceding for us all from heaven. John-Paul, pray for us. @losmomenticos All are invited to join us to celebrate his life next Friday Jan 5. Live-stream will also be available for the Mass of the Resurrection. “If we celebrate with such solemnity the birth of Jesus, it is to bear witness that every human being is somebody unique and unrepeatable…somebody thought of and chosen from eternity, someone called and identified by his own name.” -St. John Paul II

Saint of the week ✨ St Rose of Lima. Though her parents wanted her to marry, Saint Rose of Lima, always felt a calling to serving God in a profound way. Born in Lima Peru, since young she dedicated her life to prayer, fasting, and serving others. It is said that she was mocked, and not understood, while she continued pursuing her life of charity. Despite that, she continued her life dedicated to Christ. As we enter the Christmas season, we invite you to reflect on how have you lived for the Lord this season? And what ways - though maybe not conventional or popular - has he been nudging you to serve those around you (family, friends, coworkers or stranger). #miamicatholic

Thank you and all the parishioners at St. Augustine Catholic Church for the charity in providing an abundance of backpacks populated with necessities for us but are luxuries for those who have lost everything. Together with the Church’s offering and Tony Pedro with the Our Lady of Lakes Catholic Church (see attached pictures from the completion of the bags at Tony’s house), we provided the houseless an oasis of hope on the streets of Miami. After providing a Christmas backpack to everyone who attended the party, we were able to distribute 100 backpacks together with breakfast bags consisting of a fresh-made ham & cheese sandwich, chips, protein bar, juice, water and a prayer provided by Our Lady of Holy Rosary – St. Richard Catholic Church on the streets of downtown Miami on Saturday morning. The rest of the backpacks were given to the Sisters of Charity shelter for them to distribute. #miamicatholic

This Sunday’s second reading - St Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians - is the earliest writing that we have. It gives us a glimpse into the early Christian community, facing persecution for their new Christian faith. At this point in Advent, we begin to transition into a more joyful tone. Here, Paul instructs us to “rejoice always in the Lord - for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus.” This is the midpoint and we know the coming of the Lord is near. And we’re asked to rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS - not just when things are easy and good. This isn’t about being pretentious or “fake” or forced. We’re not asked to deny reality. We’re asked to rejoice in Hope because Jesus already conquered death for us. For Paul, Jesus was a game-changer. For the early Christians, His life and testimony changed their lives - becoming victory over everything else on earth - even over death. Not famine, not distress, not the sword or any earthly power can take us away from the victory of Jesus and His love for us. At this point in humanity, the daily news reminds us that this is definitely earth and not heaven. Violence and war, illness, tragedy and seeming chaos - Christians are not immune from this suffering. But we’re called to hope knowing that Jesus has conquered this and is above it - He has won the gift of eternal life for us. But it’s not here on earth. This life is passing. If we remain faithful to Him - we’ll have a share in His victory. Stay close to the Eucharist and to His Mother. Have hope, which leads to joy. This is why we’re called to rejoice in the Lord always. #miamicatholic #sundayhomilynotes

Thank you Warsaw family for taking home the vocations chalice! #miamicatholic

Parishioner Highlight ✨We are Antonio and Mia Sullo, married 25 years and counting and parents to two phenomenal children, Naima, 24 and Stefano, 19. We met in Italy, where Antonio is from, and started our family there, living in Florence for many years before moving to New York City and then, almost three years ago in early 2021, to Miami. We discovered St. Augustine after a few months of wandering from church to church, admittedly avoiding it under the wrong assumption that this campus church was “just for students”. Ultimately, we became certain that God had a hand in our decision to relocate to the area, because the closest church to our new home just happened to be the most welcoming and vibrant parish we’d ever encountered and are now blessed to belong to. There are so many wonderful things about St. Augustine, starting with daily mass, Father Vigoa and our peer parishioners. Mia particularly loves the warmth and solace of the Adoration chapel and participating in Eucharistic Adoration on First Fridays. She looks forward to joining the other women of the parish for their ever edifying monthly meetings and for Lent and Advent book clubs. Also, having been a cooperator with the Sisters of Life back in NYC, she was surprised and delighted to discover that they visit our parish from time to time, along with wonderful religious from other orders for retreats and missions. (More on comments) #parishionerhighlight

This week the Askari family took home the vocations chalice! Thank you for your prayers and service to our community! ✨ #miamicatholic

In this Sunday’s Gospel, John the Baptist announces Jesus’ coming, and asks us to prepare the way for Jesus - the only one who has the power to save us and lead us to eternal life. Saint Augustine says Jesus will come to us three times. His first Coming was His birth and living among us. The Second will be on Judgement Day. The third happens daily, and is when He comes to us personally, asking each of us to let Him into our hearts. Jesus wants to dwell is us daily. So how do we prepare the way for the Lord? How are we straightening the paths in our hearts and lives for Him? Are we able and willing to hear Him and what He wants to transform and heal in us? To what He wants to make new in us, and to invite us to be “reborn” in Him daily? We can also make His path straight by practicing virtues like charity, compassion, forgiveness, trust, faith, acts of love, prayer, and participation in the sacraments. The world will not fulfill us. It will leave us in the dark, depressed, unfulfilled and empty. Only life with and in Him will truly fulfill us. Jesus is faithful and always there, waiting to be invited into our hearts. How can we open our hearts to Him this week, personally? We invite you to spend time with Him in prayer, inviting Him to reveal how we can set the path of our heart straight for Him. #homilynotes

Saint of the week: Mary ✨ The greatest of all saints, Mary, our mother! On a feast day like today, we reflect on her fiat and her total devotion, love and faith in Christ. Like a true mother, Mary lovingly cares for us and comforts us in times we need it most. We invite you to pray with her today! #miamicatholic

This past weekend we hosted the Transformed in Love marriage prep retreat for 20 couples who are about to enter into the sacrament of marriage! What a gift to was to have them all with us and celebrate the gift of marriage ✨ #miamicatholic @catholicmiami

Yesterday’s coffee + reflection time with the Carmelite sisters and our parish mothers! ✨#miamicatholic

Join us in expressing our gratitude to Fr. Leo! We are grateful for your service and will be praying for you. On Dec 10, we will have a farewell social after the 8pm College Mass.

This Sunday marks the first Sunday of Advent. We tend to think of Advent as a few weeks of preparation, to honor Jesus’ birth and place in history. But it’s more than that. During Advent, we’re also preparing for Jesus’ second coming - something we should long for far more than fear it. We want to be reunited with our Lord and Savior. He is our God and we are His people. So each of us may have an opportunity to work on transforming our fear of His return into a longing, by working on our relationship with Him. If we’re wise and prepare our lives for Him, we’ll find ourselves running to greet Him - not scrambling in fear. We’re invited to carry out righteous deeds - to help feed and clothe the poor, to console the suffering, to visit the sick and the prisoner - to run to Him with hands full of the good we’ve done and offered to others. Run forth with righteous deeds - this is our invitation. During Advent, we’re also invited to reflect on a few questions: how might I offend God? What am I doing that is not in accord with a Christian life? Am I giving counter witness to my Christian faith? What am I not doing that I should be doing? What are my good works that fill the Kingdom of God? Those things that cost me, that inconvenience me - but that I do because they please the Lord? Use this time to prepare our hearts for the coming of the Lord, and for His return. Let’s wait and watch - awake, living for God. Working to do more of what God invites us to do as our duty to Him - and eliminating what hurts Him. #sundayhomilynotes

Saint of week: Vn. Francis-Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan ✨ You may have heard of this venerated priest. Incarcerated for his faith for 13 years after his country fell under a communist regime, he used that time to write letters of hope to his people. After being freed, he was allowed to visit Rome, but once there, he was not allowed to fly back. He lived there and was “appointed President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and he worked diligently to support the faith and culture of Vietnam (Saint Ignatius Mobile, 2023).” Afterwards, he became cardinal in 2001. Extraordinary people like himself, who are able to seek the good and God during trials, is what gives us hope that we can too become saints. #saintoftheweek

Starting this First Sunday of Advent!! Join us for weekly holy hour at our parish as we enter into the Christmas season #miamicatholic

The Caballeros take the vocations chalice this week! Thank you for your prayers and love on our community!! #miamicatholic

This Sunday we celebrated Christ the King Sunday - which is relatively new, and was instituted because of what was happening in the world at the time: atheism and communism in the Soviet Union and fascism in Italy. While nations suppressed the name of Christ in government, Pope Pius encouraged us to shout His name even louder. Communism ultimately fell. But the Kingdom of Christ prevailed and prevails. On the surface, other philosophies seem easier than Christianity - what the world is trying to teach us about happiness and fulfillment seems much easier on the surface. But it leads to nowhere. Christ’s Kingdom is of Heaven - not of this world. It’s about humility, surrender, helping the poor and embracing sinners, constantly serving those around us. Building wealth in heaven for eternity - and not just for the passing moments of this life. In celebrating Christ the King we pray not just that He reign in our hearts, but in all aspects of public life and government, as well. Not by imposing our beliefs on others, but through our actions - serving and speaking His name, and identifying ourselves with Christ. It’s not meant to be a private celebration, but a public one that all can observe in us. May our actions words and lives proclaim praise be Jesus Christ, King of the Universe - and draw others nearer to Him. #homilynotes

Saint of the week: St. Theresa of Avila ✨ “Born in 1515 at the brink of the Reformation in Ávila, Spain, Teresa has greatly influenced our contemporary understanding of contemplative prayer, what it means to have a personal relationship with God, and how we can engage in spiritual practices of monastic life when we might work and live in the secular world. (Hallow, 2023). “ Check out our stories for more on her #miamicatholic

Do you feel called to serve? Come join us this coming summer for an all parish BLUE missions trip led by Fr. Vigoa! Registration is now open. Interest meeting will be held 11/30 at 8pm - follow link in bio for more information!! #serviami #miamicatholic

Thank you Joseph and Julie Chirinos for taking the vocations chalice home this week! #miamicatholic

As we approach the end of the liturgical year, the Church turns our attention towards the end of times, and reminds us that every one of us will experience 3 out of the last 4 things (death, judgement, Heaven and hell). The message we’re given in Sunday’s Gospel is that we must bear fruit for the Lord during our life. 2 out of the 3 servants understood that they were to take what God had given them and multiply it - to grow God’s Kingdom through fruitful action. The third hid his talent and did not produce for God. What are we to learn from this? We’re meant to recognize that everything that we have is given to us by God - and we are to give it back to Him. We are not to look down on those who have less, or envy those who have more. But simply to work within what God has blessed us with according to His design and purpose. The fruit we are to bear is anything that builds the Kingdom of God and anything that makes Jesus better known, loved and served. How do we know what actions we should take with the talents God has given us? Each of us is given different talents - whether it’s to teach, or help, or donate, or build, or many other possibilities. These images of the end of our time are not meant to fill us with terror. They are meant to motivate and inspire us to ACT. At the end of our life, we want to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant. Come share in your Master’s joy.” So, this week, we invite you to ask God in prayer to show you how HE wants you to use your gifts to build His kingdom and invite others to know Jesus.

Our Frontline ministry men! Praise God for such a beautiful ministry, for those who serve us ! #MiamiCatholic

Last week’s Youth Confirmation Retreat. Pray for our young people preparing for this sacrament! #miamicatholic

Yesterdays uCatholic faculty, staff, administration luncheon at UM with Dr Pat Whitley was a success & inspiring talk!

Beba Luzárraga received the Vocations Chalice! Thank you for your prayers and service to our community!! #miamicatholic

This Sunday finds us in Week 32 of 34 weeks of Ordinary Time. During this time, we always set our sights on the end of times - and on our preparation for it. It's a time when we recall the 4 last things: death, judgement, Heaven and hell. Recognizing the truth that we will all experience 3 of these, it would be foolish not to prepare. So this Sunday's Gospel reminds us that we must commit to preparing TODAY, as it will be too late to prepare once the Bridegroom returns. Jesus invites us to remain prepared, to stay awake for His return, and to be consistently faithful to the Father and free from sin. It's important that we keep our eyes fixed on getting into the feast, and not permit neither our sins nor a lack of faith from our being accepted to the eternal feast. The words of the bridegroom “I do not know you” should only scare us if we’re not prepared. Today, THIS is our call to prepare for Jesus' return and final judgement - even if we don’t know the day or the time. Our No. 1 priority in life should be to enter heaven. If we’re blessed to be married or raise kids, our job is to get each other into the Feast, essentially bringing our loved ones along with us. Every time we receive Communion, we recommit to change and prepare to enter the feast. This is your invitation to recommit your life to God TODAY, to reorder your life around Him, and to keep your eyes fixed on the ultimate prize - being accepted into eternal peace and glory with God. Amen. #sundayhomilynotes

Happening tonight at 8pm… BLUE interest meeting!! Head to our stories for zoom link registration!

Saint of the week ✨ St. Josephine Margaret Bakhita, was a Sudanese-Italian Canossian religious sister who lived in Italy for 45 years, after having been a slave in Sudan. Known for making her time as a slave a time where she used it to grow closer in Christ, this beautiful example of saintliness in 2000 was declared a saint, the first black woman to receive the honor in the modern era! Art by Tianna Williams

Throwback to last week’s women’s retreat 🤍 We say it all the time, but we’re blessed to have a such a united community like ours! Thank you for a great weekend and we pray you are continuing to feel the graces received from our retreat! #miamicatholic #miamicatholicwomen

Hello! We are Ryan, Diana, and Isabella Diaz. We have been parishioners at St. A's for 2 years and are so grateful to have found such a wonderful community. Our favorite thing about St. Augustine is the energy and friendliness of the community. We have only known some parishioners for a short time but it feels like they are life long friends. There is always a ministry or group for everyone and there's something always going on at St. Augustine to meet new friends. We both think being facilitators for RCIA was the most impactful group we have been apart of. It was so meaningful the time we spent with hopeful Christians who were seeking the sacraments and to join the mystical body of the church.

In this Sunday’s readings, we see that hypocrisy is one of the sins that drew the greatest anger from Jesus. In the first reading, the commandment of humility is directed at priests. Jesus did not mince his words when it came to religious hypocrisy. But this doesn’t only apply to the religious leaders who Jesus exposed to the people. Secular public figures, even us - not a single one of us is “holier than thou”, but we sometimes all too easily believe we are morally superior to others whose sins are more exposed, or public. To heal hypocrisy (or avoid it), we need to recognize the truth about ourselves first. We are sinners. But every Saint was first a sinner that rose again every time they fell. We must LIVE what we preach through our behaviors. If we want to teach our kids and grandkids Values and ideals, we need to teach it through our actions - not by imposing them. Why are we here on Sundays? Why is life in the Church important? Because our lives - without God - are unmanageable. Because we are prone to insincere patterns of behavior and NEED God to make us strong. We’re dependent on Him. We ask God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. We are here because we are ALL sinners - and we humbly need God to give us strength. For us human beings and sinners, living as God wants us to live may be “impossible” on our own - but with God, ALL things are possible. We’re invited to reflect this week: are we living the values we profess? #sundayhomilynotes