In the United States, Saint Anthony of Padua has been given the obscure title of "Finder of Lost Articles." Whenever we lose something, we ask St. Anthony to find it for us and, more times than not, he answers our prayers.

The Saint Anthony of Padua, I had known over the years, is probably the one you know, as well. There was nothing I misplaced, I couldn’t ask him to find for me that he didn’t. One time, in Padua when I shame-facedly admitted turning to St. Anthony to find lost objects, a Franciscan reassured me, saying,

"Oh, Saint Anthony of Padua doesn’t mind. As a matter of fact, he likes to be part of your everyday life. You see, as you are calling him to ask him to find something, he really is taking you by the hand and leading you to Jesus."

This is not unlike the way St. Anthony lived his life. He was a brilliant man, but for most of his life, he chose to live an obscure life, a humble life. And because of this, no one knew who he was.

Saint Anthony of Padua - Doctor of the Church

Sts. Francis of Assisi and Catherine of Siena are the co-patron Saints of Italy. This is in no way, to belittle them or the place they hold in the hearts of Italians and Catholics, as a whole; but the Saint’s statue, seen in every store, car or apartment, is that of St. Anthony of Padua, or as he is affectionately called, "Il Santo."

Of course, the Portuguese would give them an argument; they call him St. Anthony of Lisbon, just because he was born there and lived there most of his life. Oh well!

This towering yet humble Saint Anthony of Padua is loved throughout the world by Catholics and non-catholics, including many Jewish people, as well. But, he is not really known for the fullness of who he was and is to us, the Church. Although, we believe this is really how he would like it, with all due respect to him and his wishes, we must nevertheless endeavor to share some of the discoveries we have made. This is not to further honor him, as he needs no added acclaim, but to encourage others to follow in his footsteps on their journey to Jesus.

Whenever our Church is in danger, and it looks like all the principalities of hell are about to level her, the Lord calls forth a Saint or two.

Saint Anthony of Padua - Early Years

Saint Anthony of Padua was born into a time of oppression: Portugal and much of Europe had been under Muslim domination for centuries. For over one hundred years, Portugal had been trying to liberate itself from its invaders. Piece by piece, pain upon pain, inch by inch their land was being reclaimed for Christ and His Church. Brave knights, many of them Crusaders, settled in Lisbon, after having fought courageously to oust the Saracens(or Muslims). St. Anthony was born of one of these knights, Martino. We are told in the most authentic biographies of the Saint, he came from a powerful family of the nobility.

His baptismal name was Fernando, which means bold in peace, and that he was, to the end of his life here on earth.

His religious education began where the most meaningful learning begins, from his parents. He not only inherited worldly wealth from his family, but a treasure that would hold him in holy stead the rest of his life, a heritage of the Faith that no one could ever take from him.

Although, there is little information about Saint Anthony of Padua’s youth, there are legends that have followed him, filling in the blank pages, for almost 800 years. One of these legends takes place when Fernando was quite young.

His father Martino and Fernando loved to go to their farm on the outskirts of town. One day, Martino took his son with him to see if their crop was ready to harvest. Summer was here; God was good and the crop was ready! There was only one problem; the greedy sparrows had their eyes and bills on the crop, as well. Martino would have to get help from the neighbors, if he was to prevent the winged enemy from pecking away his entire harvest before he could gather it. He delegated the task of keeping the thieving birds away, to Fernando, until he returned.

Fernando began running up and down the hills, shooing away the birds, before his father disappeared from sight. But soon, his little legs tired. Not far off, a small country church was calling to him, inviting him inside to pray. The little boy, torn between his duty to his father and his desire to pray, kept running toward the church and back toward the hills. Finally, he had an idea! He called to the sparrows to come with him. He led them into a large room, in the house, and locked the door and windows behind them. The little boy, Fernando, went peacefully and joyfully to spend time with the Lord, he could feel present in the church, even at this young age.

Saint Anthony of Padua's father, upon returning and not being able to find his son, became frantic. Combing every inch of the hillside, as a last resort, he thought to look in the church. There was Fernando deep in prayer! Before his father could scold him, Fernando took his father’s hand and led him into the house. As they opened the door, the singing prisoners flew out to freedom and the crop.

As a priest, the older Fernando, later said, "The waves of the sea, when they hit a rock, break, and the tempest of temptation which hurts you will break if it finds you united to Christ." Was this in memory of something that happened when he was still a boy? One day after Mass, Fernando, having stayed behind to pray, felt something stirring inside the church. He looked up toward the choir-loft; he saw a face so hideous, it made him tremble uncontrollably. It was the face of Satan; he was going to stop the boy from praying, if he had to scare him to death.