Antony of Padua		 June 13
Missionary, Preacher, Teacher of the Faith
Although he is called Antony, this great teacher was baptised Ferdinand. He came from a noble Portugese family in Lisbon, where he was born in 1195. He attended the cathedral school in Lisbon, and then at the age of fifteen joined the Augustinian Canons. This order lived in community and engaged in work beyond their own houses. Finding there were too many distractions to his studies, Ferdinand asked permission to live in the priory at Coimbra, where for eight years he devoted himself entirely to prayer and study. 
The Franciscan Order was only eleven years old, but had captured the imagination of many and grown rapidly, with an emphasis on poverty and mission, especially to the Moors. In 1220 the relics of five Franciscans who had been martyred in Morocco were brought to the priory. Ferdinand, fired with enthusiasm for the Franciscan ideals, obtained a release from the Augustinian Order and joined the Franciscans in their house of St Antony at Coimbra. He took the name Antony himself.
About the age of twenty-six he went to Morocco, but fell ill soon after his arrival and had to return to Europe. When he set sail for Portugal, a violent storm carried the ship to Messina in Sicily. Here Antony heard of a meeting of the Franciscan General Chapter to be held in Assisi and went there. This was when Brother Elias took over the control of the Franciscan Order.
Antony was sent to a little hospice near Forli, and engaged in the most menial tasks until called upon in an emergency to preach at an ordination. At that point, his remarkable preaching ability and profound learning were revealed. The Franciscans were already taking an interest in the emerging universities. Antony was appointed as the first lector or teacher in theology to the order and taught in succession at Bologna, Montpellier and Toulouse. But it was through preaching that Antony exercised his greatest influence, drawing people in their thousands from all classes of society. Soon no church could be found to hold the crowds, so he preached in the open air. Much of his preaching was against greed and usury, and he was successful in bringing back to the church many who had fallen away.
Although Antony held office in the Franciscan Order, from 1230 he devoted himself entirely to preaching in and around Padua. He died in 1231 at the early age of thirty-six, worn out by his labours and his travels. He was canonized within a year of his death. Many legends have sprung up concerning his great love of animals, including fish, to whom he preached, and numerous miracles are associated with his relics, which remain in Padua.
For Liturgical Use
Antony of Padua was born in Portugal in 1195 and joined the Augustinian Canons at an early age. Later he became a Franciscan and worked briefly in Morocco. His work there was cut short by illness. He settled in Italy, where his great learning and ability at preaching were discovered. Very soon he was drawing thousands to his preaching, often on the subjects of usury and avarice. He was successful in bringing back to the church many who had fallen away. Antony died aged only thirty-six in 1231, having worn himself out by his labours.
Sentence
My tongue shall sing of your word, O Lord, for all your commandments are just.	
				Psalm 119:172
Collects
Everloving God,
by your grace and providence
your servant Antony became a great preacher
and a willing helper in time of need;
grant that, following his example,
we may seize every opportunity
in word and deed boldly to proclaim the gospel
of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Jesus, you spoke
as no one ever spoke before or after you;
and you chose Antony by his preaching
to win thousands from selfishness to love;
help us also to overcome our frailty
and use for you every gift we have.
Psalms	19	119:9-16
Readings
Ecclesiasticus 15:1-6	Wisdom’s welcome
2 Timothy 1:13,14; 2:1-3	Faithful teaching
Luke 12:1-7		The preaching of Jesus
Post Communion Sentence
If I proclaim the gospel, this gives me no ground for boasting, for an obligation is laid on me, and woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel!	1 Corinthians 9:16