Our Hearts Are Restless: Saint Augustine on His Feast Day - Deacon Kurt Heinrich - 08/28/2026

Deacon Kurt Heinrich — a permanent deacon of the Diocese of Des Moines and a theology teacher at Dowling Catholic High School — joins Bo Bonner on the feast of Saint Augustine to give listeners the short version of a very long life. Augustine was born in 354 into a mixed household: a non-believing father and a devout mother. Bright and restless, he pursued the things of the world — wealth, reputation, a teaching career that carried him from his hometown to Rome and then Milan. He entered the Church at thirty-three, baptized by the Bishop of Milan, Ambrose, and what followed was an explosion of work: more than two hundred books and over a thousand sermons and letters. Deacon Kurt's central point is that no one lives the faith in isolation. Augustine's conversion is unthinkable apart from Saint Monica, whose feast the Church kept just the day before — her prayer, her example, and her endurance through decades of watching her son chase everything else first. That communal reality, Deacon Kurt says, extends past this life to the communion of saints and the souls in purgatory, and it carries a practical word for parents today: pray for your kids, lift them up, and make small sacrifices for them regularly. Asked about Augustine's most famous line — that our hearts are restless until they rest in God — Deacon Kurt says anyone who has chased the world already knows it is true, because everything there eventually disappoints. He also offers a lesser-known line that has stayed with him, on no one crossing the sea of the world safely unless carried by the cross of Christ, and on that cross carrying us if we do not abandon it. For listeners intimidated by City of God or On the Trinity, Bo offers his own starting point: Augustine's Letter 130, written to Proba — a short catechism on prayer, built on the idea that God has set aside gifts our hearts are not yet large enough to receive, and that prayer is precisely what enlarges them. Heard on the Catholic Morning Show, weekdays at 7 a.m. Central on Iowa Catholic Radio. More at IowaCatholicRadio.com. #SaintAugustine #SaintMonica #CatholicSaints #Confessions #CatholicConversion #CatholicPrayer #IowaCatholicRadio #CatholicPodcast Credits: Produced, Edited, and Mixed by Ayden Pugh, Alexia Baker, and Brady Grimm. ENJOYING THE SHOW? Follow The Catholic Morning Show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify so you never miss an episode — and if this one was worth your time, please leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating. It takes ten seconds and it's the single best way to help more people find the show. 🎧 LISTEN LIVE Catch The Catholic Morning Show live, weekday mornings on Iowa Catholic Radio. Listen Live · Program Schedule · Our Stations LINKSYou can follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Tiktok! More on our website.If you would like to support Iowa Catholic Radio you can donate Here! More from Iowa Catholic Radio:Sunday Dive with Katie PatrizioMan Up! with Joe StopulosCatholic Women Now with Chris Magruder and Julie NelsonThe Uncommon Good with Bo Bonner and Dr. Bud MarrBe Not Afraid with Fr. Fabian Moncada and Fr. Bruce RiebeBe Not Afraid en Español con el P. Fabián MoncadaMaking it Personal with Bishop William JoensenFaith and Family Finance with Gregory WaddleThe Great Men of the Bible with Joe Stopulos Liturgy & DevotionsThe Daily Gospel Reflection with Fr. Nick SmithThe Daily Mass from St. Francis of AssisiThe Daily Mass from St. Pius XThe Daily Mass from St. TheresaSunday Mass from the Basilica of Saint JohnWant to support your favorite show? Click Here Iowa Catholic Radio - Connecting People to Christ Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.