Written by Benoît Santos - Updated on Oct 26, 2024
Do you have a great interest in the history of saints? Do you know the story of Saint Anthony? And what role did he play in the church?
Our team has made it their mission to answer these questions just for you. Here is a brief summary of our response:
Saints are people who are held up to believers as role models for life because of a personality trait or behavior that is considered exemplary. Saint Anthony refers to several Christian saints, the most famous of which are Saint Anthony the Great of Egypt, the founder of Christian monasticism. And Saint Anthony of Padua, a doctor of the Church.
We invite you to discover in this article:
- The meaning of Saint Anthony ;
- The story of the great Saint Anthony the hermit of Egypt and the doctor of the church Saint Anthony of Padua;
- And why these two are the most famous Saints in the Anthony category.
If you would like to discover more stories about Christian saints, here are several articles available on our site that you can discover:
- The story of the patron saint of lovers
- The Story of Padre Pio
- The story of Saint Rita of Cascia
- The Story of Saint Joseph
- The story of Saint Therese
- All about the history of Saint Benedict of Nursia
Anthony the Great: monk considered the Father of Christian monasticism 
Anthony the Great, also known as Anthony of Egypt , is a monk considered the father of Christian monasticism . His life is known to us through the account given by Athanasius of Alexandria around 360. He is said to have been born around 251 and died around 356 at the age of 105.
In the arms of his two disciples, Macarius the Elder or Macarius of Egypt and Amathas. He is celebrated under the name of Saint Anthony on January 17 by Catholics and Orthodox . Also on the 30th of the ordinary calendar by the Orthodox old calendarists.
Biography of Anthony the Great
Born in Egypt in Herakleopolis Magna (today Qeman, Fayyoum) Anthony became an orphan at the age of eighteen with a younger sister to raise. Having land to cultivate, he took the Gospel literally, at the age of twenty, and distributed all his goods to the poor. He began his life as an anchorite in an isolated place near one of his fields. He divided his time between prayer and work near the hut of an old ascetic who initiated him into the eremitic life. And decided to strengthen his retirement by going to live for 13 years in the desert , founding the community of Kellia.
The influx of many disciples disturbing his isolation, he left in 285 to live as a hermit in Pispir, in the middle of the desert, in an abandoned fort. There he suffered the temptations of the Devil which lasted longer and during which various demons tried to attack his life. Anthony resisted everything, not letting himself be diverted by the phantasmal visions which had multiplied. Little by little, disciples began to gather around Anthony the Great who came to follow his teaching. Living nearby in caves, they listened to him preach and joined him in prayer.
Over the years, they grouped together in different cores of disciples, electing an elder as their head. And all choosing Anthony as their spiritual guide. In 312, Anthony moved further away to isolate himself. He went to Thebaid, on Mount Qolzum. Venerated by many visitors, he gave them advice on wisdom and piety each time. The religious who adopted the solitary lifestyle of Saint Anthony were called anchorites. They opposed the cenobites who chose life in monastic communities.
The different representations of Saint Anthony
The life of Saint Anthony and his temptations have inspired many artists. Notably Hieronymus Bosch, Pieter Brueghel, Jacques Callot, Dali, Max Ernst, Matthias Grünewald, Diego Velazquez. Gustave Flaubert also dedicated a story to him "The Temptation of Saint Anthony ". Artists have also often depicted his meeting with Saint Paul of Thebes.
The most famous work related to Saint Anthony remains the Isenheim Altarpiece , painted by Matthias Grünewald. Many representations of the saint show him accompanied by a pig carrying a bell. He is thus sometimes called in Italy Antonio del porco or " Saint Anthony of the pigs " in the Bruche Valley in Alsace.
It should be noted, however, that the demons that tormented the saint were initially represented by wild animals (lion, bear, etc.) and then in the form of more familiar animals such as the wolf and the wild boar. Rue Saint-Antoine and the Faubourg Saint-Antoine des Ive, 11th and 12th arrondissements of Paris, owe their names to him.
The relics of the Egyptian Saint Anthony
The relics of Saint Anthony the Egyptian were brought back from the Holy Land by a lord of Dauphiné, Guigues Disdier, accompanied by his brother-in-law, Jocelin de Châteauneuf, in 1070. They were placed in the village of La Motte-aux-Bois, which became Saint-Antoine-l'Abbaye, in the Abbey of Saint-Antoine-l'Abbaye.
The Benedictines then began building a church and a hospital to treat victims of the Mal des Ardents. In the 13th century, the Pope entrusted the premises to the canons of the Order of Saint Anthony . Major extension works were carried out from the 14th to the 16th century, a prosperous period for the Order in general and the abbey in particular.
Veneration in honor of Saint Anthony the Hermit
In Bousbecque, France, the altar of Saint Anthony the Hermit, in the Saint-Martin church. It is a place of pilgrimage to Saint Anthony the Hermit who is prayed to against skin diseases.
The Flemish, in particular, came from the Menin region to invoke him against shingles. Saint Anthony is also the patron saint of the Foreign Legion.
Saint Anthony of Padua (+1231): Representation
Saint Anthony was a monk and Doctor of the Church in the 13th century. After the shortest canonization process in Church history, he was canonized by Gregory IX just eleven months after his death. He performed many documented miracles during his lifetime and was named " doctor evangelicus " by Pope Pius XII in 1946.
Saint Anthony is the patron saint of the cities of Padua, Lisbon, Paderborn and Hildesheim. He is also the patron saint of lovers and marriage, women and children, bakers... He is said to help fight sterility, demonic powers, fever, plague... The attributes of Saint Anthony are the baby Jesus, the fish, a donkey, a flame in his hand, a host and a monstrance.
Saint Anthony is probably one of the most famous and beloved saints among the people of the Catholic Church. So many miracles happened at his tomb that Bonaventure said, "If you are looking for miracles, go to Anthony! There is hardly a Roman Catholic church in the whole world that does not have an image, an altar, or the like dedicated to Saint Anthony.
Incredible journey of Saint Anthony
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His stay in Portugal
Saint Anthony was born Fernando Martim de Bulhões y Taveira de Azevedo to a wealthy noble family in Lisbon in 1195. He attended school at the Convent of the Order of the Cross. He then spent his early years of apprenticeship with the canons of the Cathedral , which was next to his childhood home. Fernando's decision to become a priest was probably due to the fact that many of his peers in the area also wanted to become priests.
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Anthony becomes a Franciscan
In mid-1220, Fernando requested his dismissal from the Augustinian Order. Antony wanted to follow the stricter ideals of the Franciscans from this point on. He felt called to be a missionary and martyr and so, after his dismissal from the Augustinian Order in September 1220, he became a disciple of Francis of Assisi. It was on this occasion that he finally shed his baptismal name to take the name Anthony .
It was in honor of an Egyptian hermit to whom the Franciscan monastery of Santo Antao dos Olivais was also dedicated. After familiarizing himself with the rules of the Franciscans, Anthony went to Morocco to preach the Gospel there. However, he was unable to carry out his plan to preach to the Muslims because a tropical disease struck him, forcing him to return home. However, the ship in which Anthony intended to return to Spain was carried by a storm to Sicily, where Anthony finally landed in Milazzo.
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The Preacher's Time
Anthony's talent for speeches was discovered rather accidentally and not intentionally by him. In 1222, all the priests refused to preach an extemporaneous sermon, only Anthony, at the insistence of the minister, finally gave in. He managed to thrill the audience with his speech, in which he unintentionally revealed his deep knowledge of the Bible.
Back in Montepaolo, he left his cave and began his vocation as a preacher in Romagna. In 1229 he was elected provincial of Northern Italy. The end of his life was dominated by preaching, in which he excelled. He was in Padua to preach Lent in 1231. It was there that he died of exhaustion at the age of 36, in this city that venerated him. And which gave him his second name, Saint Anthony of Padua.
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Saint Anthony is particularly popular in the Catholic tradition. He is the one to whom we address our prayers when we wish to find a lost object. Or to bring back to the right path a loved one who has gone astray. By extension, he has become the patron saint of lost causes.
Over time, Saint Anthony also became the protector of pregnant women and people suffering from infertility. It is this image of guide, both paternal and protective, that makes Saint Anthony an excellent choice for a baptismal medal.
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