The feast of St. Anthony is celebrated every June 13. He is known as the patron saint of lost items, but he is also the patron saint of amputees. St. Anthony of Padua isn’t actually Italian. He was born in an influential family with the name Ferdinand in 1195 in Portugal.
At the age of 15, he moved into the Augustinian Abbey of St. Vincent near Lisbon and joined The Canons Regular of St. Augustine—a religious order, to live a life devoted to God. St. Anthony quickly developed a natural ability to speak passionately about the Word of God and to draw large crowds.
St. Anthony is also regarded as the “Miracle Worker”
A few of the miracles attributed to Saint Anthony are
Preaching to the fish
Once faced with a large crowd that was ordered to ignore him. St. Anthony decided to preach to the fish in the river. Suddenly thousands of fish surrounded St. Anthony, pushing their heads up as though trying to hear his words.
Donkey Bowing to the Eucharist
A starved donkey was brought to St. Anthony upon his request. The owner on one side of the stable holding the donkey’s usual oats, while St. Anthony was on the other side holding the Eucharist. Although the donkey was starving, he immediately went to the Eucharist and bowed down in reverence.
Reattaching an amputated foot
A heretic cut off his foot after he misunderstood what St. Anthony told him. His mother called St. Anthony for help, and when he arrived he fervently prayed to God for His miraculous intercession, and he was able to reattach the man’s foot.
Found his lost possession – The Book of Psalms
Popularly known as the saint people pray to for help finding lost items, St. Anthony received his own miracle when he found his lost Book of Psalms.
St. Anthony died June 13, 1231, and became a saint only 11 months after his death.