Pope Leo XIV recommended a letter by St. Augustine as a helpful guide for deepening prayer during his flight to Algeria on April 13, according to OSV News. The pope highlighted “Letter to Proba,” also known as Letter 130, written in A.D. 412, saying it offers practical advice for meaningful prayer.
The topic is significant as it addresses the challenges many people face when trying to enrich their spiritual lives through prayer. Pope Leo said that St. Augustine’s guidance can help believers understand how to make their prayers more heartfelt and sincere.
“Augustine gives some wonderful guidelines and hints, if you will, about how our prayer can really be meaningful,” Pope Leo said aboard the papal plane at the start of his pilgrimage to Africa.
St. Augustine wrote the letter in response to Proba, a Roman widow who asked about understanding Romans 8:26—where St. Paul writes that “we do not know how to pray as we ought.” In his reply, Augustine describes true prayer as desire rather than just words or speech directed toward God. He writes: “To use much speaking in prayer is to employ a superfluity of words in asking a necessary thing… For in most cases prayer consists more in groaning than in speaking, in tears rather than in words.” He further explains that seeking happiness is essentially seeking God himself: “A happy life is to be sought after, and this is to be asked from the Lord God… ‘Blessed is the people whose God is the Lord.'”
Pope Leo acknowledged his frequent references to St. Augustine since he belongs to the Augustinian order and called himself a “son of Augustine” after becoming pope in May 2025. He joked about being told not to mention Augustine too often but said he could not avoid it while traveling through Northern Africa where St. Augustine served as bishop of Hippo.
The pope also encouraged reading “The Confessions of St. Augustine,” describing it as an excellent starting point for those unfamiliar with the saint’s writings.
On April 14, Pope Leo plans visits related closely with St. Augustine’s legacy—including Mass at Annaba’s Basilica of St. Augustine built near where he died—and will continue sharing recommendations for spiritual reading on future trips.
