I Am a Son of Saint Augustine: Pope Leo XIV on His Favorite Saint

When Pope Leo XIV, the first pope from the United States, emerged onto the loggia of Saint Peter's Basilica, he introduced himself to the world as "a son of Saint Augustine." From his early formation and priesthood to his missionary work and leadership in the Order of Saint Augustine, the life of Robert Prevost has been shaped at every turn by this great Doctor of the Church.

In this unique collection, you will come to know the mind and heart of Pope Leo through his reflections on Augustine's life, thought, and spirituality, gathered from both before and after his election to the papacy. Included are excerpts from Prevost's doctoral dissertation, original translations of messages delivered in Spanish, rare passages from book forewords, and references to Augustine in Pope Leo's early audiences, homilies, and speeches.

This portrait of a thoroughly Augustinian pope is also rounded out by a timeline of Prevost's life, the full text of The Rule of Saint Augustine, and an insightful foreword by Sister Margaret Atkins, a canoness of the Order of Saint Augustine at Boarbank Hall in England.

Deeply informative yet highly readable, I Am a Son of Saint Augustine is the perfect introduction to the new head of the Catholic Church--a true son of his spiritual father.

Matthew Becklo is a husband and father, writer and editor, and the Publishing Director for Bishop Robert Barron's Word on Fire Catholic Ministries. He is the author of The Way of Heaven and Earth: From Either/Or to the Catholic Both/And. He has also contributed essays for Wisdom and Wonder: How Peter Kreeft Shaped the Next Generation of Catholics and The New Apologetics: Defending the Faith in a Post-Christian Era, and edited multiple books, including The Holy Hour: Meditations for Eucharistic Adoration and the Flannery O'Connor Collection. His writing is featured at Word on Fire, National Catholic Register, Catholic World Report, and Aleteia, and has also appeared in Inside the Vatican magazine and the Evangelization & Culture journal, and online at Forbes Magazine, First Things, RealClear Religion, and the Catholic Herald. He lives in New York with his wife, Elizabeth, and their four children.