Feast of St. Augustine

Prayer on Finding God after a Long Search

Too late have I loved you,
O Beauty so ancient, O Beauty so new,
too late have a I loved you!
In my weakness
I ran after the beauty
of the things you have made.
You were with me,
and I was not with you.
The things you have made kept me from you--
the things which would have no being
unless they existed in your!

You have called,
you have cried out,
and you have pierced my deafness.
You have radiated forth,
you have shined out brightly,
and yo have dispelled my blindness.
You have sent forth your fragrance,
and I have breathed it in,
and I long for you.
I have tasted you,
and I hunger and thirst for you.
You have touched me,
and I ardently desire your peace.

- St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430)
Bishop, Writer and Doctor

New Saint Joseph People's Prayer Book, Catholic Book Publishing