St. Anthony of Padua

There can be a tendency, I know fall into it myself, to be drawn to the saints because of the extraordinary things God did through them. We remember the miracles, the dramatic stories, and the incredible ways God worked through their lives. St. Anthony is no exception. He's often remembered as the "Saint of Miracles" or the patron saint of lost things. But the thing that continues to draw me to St. Anthony isn't his miracles. It's that his life answers a question I've often asked myself: What does it look like to live as though Christ is enough?
St. Anthony was born Fernando Martins in 1195 in Lisbon, Portugal, into a wealthy and respected family. He received a good education, but even from a young age it became clear that he desired something the world couldn’t give him. His heart was already drawn toward God. At only fifteen years old, he left behind his family's wealth and entered the Augustinian order, desiring a life of prayer, study, and communion with the Lord.
However, the monastery where St. Anthony first lived was close enough that his friends and family could visit, making it difficult to find the silence he longed for. Wanting to give himself more fully to prayer, he requested to be transferred to a more secluded monastery. There he spent nearly nine years immersed in scripture and theology.
Looking back, it's tempting to skip over those years because nothing dramatic seems to happen. But I don't think St. Anthony would've skipped over them. Long before crowds gathered to hear him preach, God was quietly preparing him in the hiddenness of prayer, study, and ordinary faithfulness. None of those hidden years were wasted.
Everything changed when the bodies of five Franciscan missionaries were brought back from Morocco after being martyred for preaching the Gospel. While many would have seen tragedy, St. Anthony saw an invitation. He longed to give his own life for Christ saying to one of the Franciscans, <em>"Brother, I would gladly put on the habit of your Order if you would promise to send me as soon as possible to the land of the Saracens, that I may gain the crown of the holy martyrs."</em> With permission to leave the Augustinians, he joined the Franciscans, taking the name Anthony and set out for Morocco with one desire, to preach and give his life for Christ.
But God had another plan.
Shortly after arriving in Morocco, Anthony became seriously ill and was forced to return home. On the journey back, a violent storm blew his ship completely off course, landing him in Italy instead of Portugal. The missionary who had hoped to die a martyr instead found himself quietly serving in an unknown Franciscan community where no one knew who he was. Assuming he was uneducated, the friars gave him simple, ordinary work, and despite his education and deep knowledge of scripture St. Anthony humbly accepted his duties never feeling the need to prove himself.
Then, on what must have seemed like an ordinary day, things changed again.
At an ordination, none of the friars had prepared a homily, so Anthony was unexpectedly asked to preach. Out of humble obedience, he accepted. As he spoke, everyone present realized the quiet friar they had overlooked possessed not only a remarkable knowledge of scripture but a deep love for Christ that gave life to every word he preached.
From that day forward, Anthony's life became remarkably public. Thousands gathered to hear him preach throughout Italy and France. Churches could no longer contain the crowds, so he often preached in open fields and public squares. St. Francis himself recognized Anthony's gift and entrusted him with teaching theology to the Franciscan brothers. Eventually Anthony was appointed provincial minister over the friars of northern Italy. Yet even in the busiest years of his ministry, he continually withdrew to hermitages and quiet places for prayer. Like Christ Himself, he never allowed public ministry to replace private communion with the Father.
Anthony spent the final years of his life preaching Christ, calling sinners back to Confession, defending the truths of the faith, and helping countless people rediscover the love of God. Although his public ministry lasted only about a decade, its impact on the Church has endured for centuries. St. Anthony became ill after preaching his last and most famous Lenten sermons in Padua and died in 1231 at thirty-six years old. In his final moments as the friars gathered around him, they noticed him gazing intently into the distance. When they asked what he was looking at, Anthony simply replied, "I see my Lord."