St. Anthony, the Finder Saint
St. Anthony was a Franciscan friar who loved to tell everyone about God. Today he is famous for helping people find lost things!
St. Anthony
The Finder Saint
Tony, Tony, Look Around!
Meet St. Anthony!
St. Anthony was a Franciscan friar who loved to tell everyone about God. Today he is famous for helping people find lost things!
He is also called St. Anthony of Padua
Follow St. Anthony!
Let's follow Anthony from the seaside all the way to Padua!
Story 1
Fernando by the Sea
Lisbon, Portugal, about 1200
Long ago, in Lisbon, a city by the sea, lived a boy named Fernando. He loved to watch the big ships sail in and out. Most of all, he loved to pray in the cathedral near his home.
Fernando went to school at the cathedral. He learned to read, to sing and to pray. More than anything, he wanted to give his whole life to God!
Let us pray
Dear God, I want to love You with my whole heart.
Story 2
A Brand-New Name
Coimbra, Portugal, 1220
Fernando grew up and became a monk. One day, some friars came to his door. They were poor and joyful, and they followed St. Francis. Fernando wanted to be just like them!
So Fernando became a Franciscan friar. He put on a brown robe and a rope belt, and he took a brand-new name: Anthony!
Anthony sailed away to tell faraway people about Jesus. But he got sick, and on the way home, a big wind blew his ship all the way to Italy! God had a new plan.
Let us pray
Jesus, help me to follow You wherever You lead me.
Story 3
The Surprise Sermon
Forlì, Italy, 1222
In Italy, Anthony lived very quietly. He washed pots, swept floors and prayed. Nobody knew how much he knew about God!
One day, at a big celebration, no one was ready to give the sermon. “Brother Anthony, you speak!” they said. Anthony felt a little shy, but he said yes.
When Anthony spoke, everyone was amazed! His words about God were wise and beautiful. From then on, he traveled everywhere to preach.
Let us pray
Holy Spirit, help me to share God's love with my words.
Story 4
The Fish Who Listened
Rimini, Italy
In the town of Rimini, many people would not listen to Anthony. They just walked away! So Anthony went down to the seashore.
“Fish of the sea, come and hear God's word!” he called. And they came! Rows and rows of fish poked their heads out of the water to listen.
The people came running to see. When they saw the fish listening, they decided to listen too, and their hearts turned back to God!
Let us pray
Dear God, help me to listen to You with my whole heart.
Story 5
The Mule Who Knelt
Toulouse, France
A man in Toulouse did not believe that Jesus is really present in the Holy Eucharist. “If my mule bows to Jesus, I will believe!” he said.
His hungry mule was given a big bucket of oats. But the mule walked right past the oats and knelt down before Jesus! The man believed, and he was so happy.
Let us pray
Jesus, I believe that You are really here in the Holy Eucharist.
Story 6
The Lost Book
Montpellier, France, about 1224
Long ago, books were rare and very precious. Anthony had a special book of prayers and songs, full of his notes for teaching.
One night, a young friar took the book and ran away with it! Anthony did not get angry. He knelt down and asked God to help bring it back.
Soon the young friar came back with the book. “I'm sorry!” he said. Anthony forgave him with a big smile. That's why people ask St. Anthony to help them find lost things!
Let us pray
St. Anthony, help me find what I have lost, and help me to forgive.
Story 7
The Treehouse and the Baby
Camposampiero, near Padua, 1231
When Anthony was tired, his friends built him a little room up in a big walnut tree. There he could pray in peace among the leaves and the birds.
One night, his friend Count Tiso saw a bright light shining from Anthony's window. He peeked inside, and saw Anthony holding Baby Jesus in his arms!
Soon after, Jesus took Anthony home to Heaven. Today, people all over the world ask for his help, and they share St. Anthony's Bread with the hungry.
Let us pray
St. Anthony, help me to love Jesus and to share with the poor.
A Prayer to St. Anthony
Let's pray it together!
St. Anthony, friend of Jesus, you loved God's word and shared it with everyone, even the fish! Help me to listen to Jesus, to share with people who are hungry, and to forgive. When I lose something, help me to stay calm and look carefully. Most of all, help me to find my way to Jesus. Amen.
A little prayer for little ones
Tony, Tony, look around, something's lost and must be found! Help me search and help me pray, and find my way to God each day! Amen.
Help St. Anthony Find Them!
1 teddy bear
2 keys
2 socks
1 glasses
1 ball
3 fish
1 book
1 kitty
Be Like St. Anthony!
Color in a fish each time you do it!
I can listen when someone is talking.
I can share my food with someone.
I can say sorry, and I can forgive.
I can look carefully for lost things.
I can tell a friend about Jesus!
St. Anthony's Special Day
June 13
Every year on June 13, the Church celebrates St. Anthony, the friend of the lost and found. Here are some fun ways to celebrate!
Share bread with someone
Play a finding game
Pick a flower for Jesus
Visit the fish at a pond
Color St. Anthony!
Look around with love!
You can be a helper too!
St. Anthony helps us find lost things. Even better, he helps us find our way to Jesus! When you listen, share and forgive, you are a lot like him. St. Anthony is cheering you on!
Dear Jesus, thank You for St. Anthony. Help me to find my way to You every day. Amen.
For Grown-Ups
Where these stories come from: the early lives of St. Anthony and the Little Flowers of St. Francis, retold here simply and gently for young children.
Fernando by the Sea. Fernando Martins de Bulhões was born in Lisbon in about 1195 and was educated at the cathedral school there.
A Brand-New Name. At about fifteen he joined the Canons Regular of St. Augustine and moved to the Abbey of Santa Cruz in Coimbra. Moved by the Franciscan martyrs of Morocco, he joined the friars in 1220 and took the name Anthony. He sailed for Morocco but fell ill, and on the voyage home a storm drove his ship to Sicily.
The Surprise Sermon. After the friars' great gathering at Assisi in 1221 he lived quietly at the hermitage of Montepaolo. At an ordination at Forlì in 1222 nobody had prepared to preach; asked to speak, he astonished everyone. St. Francis later asked him to teach theology to the friars.
The Fish Who Listened. Told in the Little Flowers of St. Francis: when the people of Rimini would not hear him, he preached to the fish at the shore, which gathered in rows to listen, and the townspeople were moved to conversion.
The Mule Who Knelt. A traditional story usually set in Toulouse (some say Rimini or Bourges). A man who doubted the Real Presence said he would believe if his mule, kept from food, knelt before the Eucharist instead of eating; it did.
The Lost Book. At Montpellier, around 1224, a novice leaving the order took Anthony's psalter, full of his teaching notes. Anthony prayed, and the novice returned it. This is the origin of his patronage of lost things.
The Treehouse and the Baby. In his last weeks, in 1231, Count Tiso built him a cell in a walnut tree at Camposampiero, and is said to have seen him holding the Child Jesus. Anthony died near Padua on June 13, 1231, aged about 36, and was canonized within a year. Alms for the poor called “St. Anthony's Bread” honor him. He was named a Doctor of the Church in 1946.
St. Anthony, pray for us!
The end
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