Text from The Saint Andrew Daily Missal,
unless stated otherwise.
Saint Anthony Of Padua.
Confessor.
Doctor Of The Church.
Feast Day 13 June.
Double.
White Vestments.
English: Apparition of The Child Jesus to Saint Anthony of Padua.
Português: Aparição do Menino Jesus a Santo Antônio de Pádua.
Artist: Francisco de Zurbarán (1598–1664).
Date: 1627-1630.
Current location: São Paulo Museum of Art, Brazil.
This File: 4 January 2010.
User: Dornicke
(Wikimedia Commons)
Saint Anthony of Padua.
Available on YouTube at
“Always present and living in The Church, The Holy Ghost raised up, in the 13th-Century, The Sons of Dominic and The Sons of Francis”, writes Dom Guéranger in his “The Liturgical Year”. “These new hosts, organised for new needs, threw themselves into the arena, pursuing heretics, thundering against vice, mixing with the people whom they enrolled in crowds into their Third Orders, the assured refuge of Christian Life.
“Of all The Sons of The Patriarch of Assisi, the best-known, the most powerful before God and men, is Anthony, whose Feast Day we are Celebrating."
Born at Lisbon, Portugal, of noble parents, he despised all riches (Gospel). Full of The Holy Ghost, Who transformed The Apostles, he entered The Religious Host so as to be able to fight for The Faith and to be ready when The Master came (Gospel).
Living a retired life in Tuscany, he gave himself up to Divine Contemplation (Introit); he then received the mission to Preach the Gospel. The wisdom of his Doctrine and his eloquence caused him to be called The Ark of The Testament and The Hammer of Heretics.
A year before his death, he came to Padua, where, loaded with merits, he died at the age of thirty-five in 1231, and was established by Jesus over all His Riches (Communion).
Remembering how Saint Anthony recovered, by Divine Intervention, a Sacred Book that had been stolen from him, let us ask this Saint not only to make us recover Earthly and perishable things, but, also, to obtain for us the Spiritual help by which we may deserve to enjoy Eternal Riches (Collect).
Mass: Os justi.
Even Dom Gueranger praises S. Anthony as “the most powerful [patron saint] before God” of all of the order of Assisi.
ReplyDeleteThere are so many wonderful patrons in the Catholic “pantheon”, but truly S. Anthony is worthy of the term “wonderworker.” Just his truly miraculous intercession with regard to lost objects is worthy of observation, something all of us have experienced in our lives.
The writer highly recommends the devotion of the “13 Tuesdays Novena to S. Anthony”— which tradition started within the year of his death, because he passed away on a Friday (12/13/1231): no miracles had occurred at that time. But when his funeral Mass and procession were held on June 17, the following Tuesday, numerous extraordinary miracles that the common folk had petitioned were granted; and of course The 13 weeks comes from his death being on the 13th day of the month. It is said partly as a result of the intense devotion of Thanksgiving that S. Anthony was canonized by Pope Gregory IX, less than one year later, May 30,1232. If one cannot do the 13 Tuesdays, one may also fulfill the devotion on 13 consecutive Sundays.
“If then you ask for a miracle, death, error calamities;
The leprosy and demons fly, and health succeeds infirmities;
The sea obeys, and fetters break, and lifeless limbs thou dost restore, and treasures lost are found again,
When Saint Anthony thou dost implore!”
— Saint Anthony’s Brief or Hymn (excerpt)
Another riveting contribution from our North American Correspondent, Dante Peregrinus. Many thanks, indeed.
ReplyDeleteWe all have had cause of time to be thankful to Saint Anthony of Padua for assistance in locating lost articles.
Dante Peregrinus's mention of the Novena to Saint Anthony of Padua (see, above) is well worth considering.
Very kind of you, Zephyrinus, But just comments “from my poor heart,” as S. Francis de Sales was wont to say.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, the source for the substitution of 13 consecutive Sundays instead of 13 Tuesdays is from the great compendium of Catholic devotion, “The Raccolta,” Benziger Press (1951,1957), n. 530 (b): “The Faithful who spend some time in devout meditation or prayer or who perform some other acts of piety in honor of Saint Anthony of Padua on Tuesday or Sunday of any week with the intention of doing so for 13 Tuesdays or Sundays without interruption, may gain a plenary indulgence on the usual conditions.”
If one is not certain how to meditate or what prayers to say, The Raccolta n. 530(a) suggests simply saying an Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be in honor of S. Anthony on each of the 13 consecutive chosen days, whether Tuesday or Sunday. This version of the practice comes with an indulgence of 300 days.
S. Anthony as a patron saint is indeed a “wonderworker.”