Through the prayers and encouragement of Saint Monica, her son Augustine listened to the preaching of Saint Ambrose, converted entirely to Christ and accepted Baptism. Monica's faith and example provide the perfect image for our institute for patristic studies: her perseverance brought two of the Church's greatest fathers and doctors together, the result of which affected the course of the Church's development, life and understanding of the Mystery of Christ until today. Such faith and perseverance can serve as our guide to a deeper understanding of the work of Church Fathers to help in the Church's scholarship, and to continue that same work of evangelization, conversion and the deepening of Catholic life in our own time.

This Institute began in December 2004, during the sesquicentennial celebration of Saint John the Evangelist Parish in Stamford, Connecticut. Efforts progressed and continue to acquire the entire patristic corpus by the Abbe Migne, as well as other important and modern critical editions of patristic works. To date, Saint Monica's has acquired the entire Patrologia Latina and is gathering the volumes of the Patrologia Graeca-Latina.

The purpose of this Institute is to offer these primary resources to students and scholars in the fields of patristics, theology and church history, free of charge, and so to assist in their attempts to further the theological enterprise of the Church, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls. To that end, the institute opened its doors for research and small group lectures in April 2005. An annual patristic symposium is planned and, to encourage research and scholarship, a grant will be offered annually to one scholar to pursue a theme in patristic scholarship, either historical or theological in nature. The institute will also provide a series of lectures and organize study groups to further interest in the works of the Church Fathers.

The Institute is located at Saint John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church in Stamford, Connecticut, at the heart of this bustling city, which is one of the fastest growing financial centers in the nation. Stamford is a forty-minute ride from midtown Manhattan, by train or automobile. Saint John's and the Saint Monica Institute are a two-minute drive from I-95 and a five-minute walk from the train station on Amtrak's eastern corridor, with Metroliner and Acela service from Boston to Washington, D.C.