Fr. Bob’s Spiritual Reflection–7/9/2025
Remembering St. Augustine Zhao Rong
Today we remember in our liturgy St. Augustine Zhao Rong and his companions who died for their faith in China.
Augustine was a Chinese Catholic priest who was martyred in 1815. He was canonized by Pope John Paul II on October 1, 2000, as one of 120 martyrs of China.
Augustine was a soldier of the imperial army of the Qing Dynasty and was put in charge of guarding Christian prisoners. In particular, he guarded Father Gabriel Taurin Dufresse and through that contact, Augustine was converted.
When Father Gabriel was released from prison, he baptized Zhao Rong and gave him the name Augustine. Five years later Augustine was ordained a priest and spent his ministry working on evangelization and conversion of pagans. A new Emperor brought a new wave of persecutions and Augustine along with many others were executed.
While this feast brings about the memory of the tragedy of death, I can’t help but think of the tragedy of the deaths of so many people, especially children, from the flooding in Texas. Let our hearts go out to the people there and prayers for their healing. Life is so precious…..so make the best of it all the time.