The saint most often called the patron saint of patience is St. Monica (332–387), the mother of St. Augustine, who prayed and wept for her son for about seventeen years until he turned to God, and who won over her bad-tempered husband and her difficult mother-in-law by her gentleness. In the Bible, the great model of patience is holy Job, whose name has become a byword for patient endurance. Below are St. Monica’s story, what Scripture teaches about patience, other saints for patience, and prayers for patience with others, with yourself and in waiting.
A short prayer for patience, written for this page:
St. Monica, you waited years for God to answer your prayers, and you never gave up.
Pray for me when I am tired of waiting, when people try my temper,
and when I am impatient with myself. Help me to trust God’s time. Amen.
St. Monica, patron of patience
Monica was born in 332 in Thagaste, in North Africa, into a Christian family. She was married to Patricius, a pagan official with a violent temper, and lived with his difficult mother. Instead of answering anger with anger, she waited for the storm to pass and then spoke calmly; St. Augustine tells us in his Confessions that other wives were amazed that she was never beaten, and that she eventually won both her husband and her mother-in-law to Christ.
Her eldest son, Augustine, brilliant and restless, left the faith as a young man and lived for years with a mistress and in a heretical sect. Monica followed him from Africa to Italy, praying and weeping. When she begged a bishop to talk to her son, he told her to be patient and keep praying, and added that the son of so many tears could not be lost. Augustine was baptized by St. Ambrose in Milan at Easter 387, and a few months later Monica died at Ostia, at peace. See the St. Monica prayer.
The prayer of her feast from the 1916 daily missal:
O God, the consoler of the afflicted, and the salvation of those who hope in thee, who mercifully accepted the pious tears of the blessed Monica for the conversion of her son, grant us by the intercession of both to deplore our sins and to obtain the grace of thy pardon. Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God world without end. Amen.
Holy Job, the Bible’s model of patience
The Book of Job tells of a just man who lost his children, his wealth and his health, yet would not curse God. St. James wrote (James 5:10–11, Douay-Rheims):
Take, my brethren, for an example of suffering evil, of labour and patience, the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord.
Behold, we account them blessed who have endured. You have heard of the patience of Job, and you have seen the end of the Lord, that the Lord is merciful and compassionate.
What Scripture teaches about patience
St. Paul (Romans 5:3–5, Douay-Rheims):
And not only so; but we glory also in tribulations, knowing that tribulation worketh patience;
And patience trial; and trial hope;
And hope confoundeth not: because the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts, by the Holy Ghost, who is given to us.
Patience is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit, and it is part of the virtue of fortitude: the strength to bear what is hard without losing peace or love. See the virtues.
Other saints for patience
- St. Rita of Cascia, who endured a cruel husband with patience and prayer. See the St. Rita prayer.
- St. Francis de Sales, who struggled with a quick temper and became known for his gentleness. See the St. Francis de Sales prayer.
- St. Augustine, who learned from his mother the patience of God. See the St. Augustine prayer.
Prayers for patience
Written for this page.
Patience with others
Lord, give me patience with the people who frustrate me today.
Help me to hold my tongue, to see the good in them,
and to treat them with the patience you show me. Amen.
Patience with myself
Lord, I am tired of my own faults.
Help me to be gentle with myself, to get up after every fall,
and to trust that you are not finished with me yet. Amen.
Patience in waiting
St. Monica, you waited years for an answer.
Pray for me as I wait for (name your intention).
Help me to keep praying, to keep hoping, and to accept God’s time. Amen.
For a parent
St. Monica, patron of mothers, pray for me.
Give me patience with my children, wisdom to guide them,
and perseverance in praying for them, as you prayed for Augustine. Amen.
See also the Catholic prayer for patience.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the patron saint of patience?
St. Monica, who prayed for about seventeen years for the conversion of her son, St. Augustine.
When is St. Monica’s feast day?
August 27, the day before the feast of her son, St. Augustine.
Who in the Bible is known for patience?
Job, whose patience St. James praises (James 5:11).
More prayers
- Catholic prayer for patience
- St. Monica prayer
- Patron saints of mental health
- Catholic prayer for strength
- Patron saint of mothers
- Patron saints
Texts and sources
- James 5:10–11 and Romans 5:3–5 (Douay-Rheims).
- The Mass Every Day of the Year (1916), St. Monica (May 4), Collect, public domain (archive.org).