 Our
Mother of Consolation is a particularly Augustinian devotion to Mary. When Saint Monica
was widowed she had recourse to Mary in prayer to find comfort. The Virgin
and the Child Jesus appeared to her and presented her with a leather belt, indicating that
this was offered as a sign of her protection and consolation. Monica wore this belt from
then on and gave it also to her son, Augustine, who wore it from the time of his
conversion. Thus the black leather belt forms part of the religious habit of Augustinian
men and women still today. |
