Who is St. Anthony?

First of all, is it Anthony or Antony? Or if you grew up in Chicago or even Boston, it was pronounced ANT-KNEE. But everybody pretty much says Anthony.

He is formally known as St. Anthony of Padua, but also as St. Anthony of Lisbon, which is where he was born in the year 1195, the son of a wealthy family. His given name was Fernando Martins de Bulhão. 

Lots of cities can claim a connection to Anthony, as he lived in Lisbon, Coimbra, Morocco, Messina, Montepaolo, Bologna, LaVerna, and then in Padua.

One of only 36 Doctors of the Church, Anthony was the first theology teacher in the Franciscan order. Another fun fact: he’s the Patron Saint for lost items.

He died at the age of 36 in a convent in Arcella, just outside of Padua, on June 13, which is also his feast day.

As the story goes, Anthony had a book of psalms that he used when creating his sermons. It had all his notes and comments in it. One day, a disgruntled novice quit the order and decided to snatch Anthony’s book as he hit the road.

Anthony was so upset, he prayed that the thief return his book, and he got his wish. The young man not only returned the book, he returned to his studies. That stolen book is said to be preserved in the Franciscan friary in Bologna.

So now when you lose your keys, your wallet, your eyeglasses, and maybe even your mind, you can pray to St. Anthony. I pray to him when I lose my cell phone. I say, “Tony, Tony, come around. My cell phone’s lost and can’t be found.”

Then I go to my landline, dial my cell number, it rings, and I find it. Works every time!!

Here’s another fun fact: St. Anthony is also known as the Patron Saint of fundraising. His advice and ideas on why we need to fundraise are included in his writings: The Moral Concordances of Saint Anthony of Padua. You can buy a copy on Amazon. No kidding.