"I See My Lord" - The Death Of St. Anthony

The Shrine of Arcella is in a neighborhood in the city of Padua. At the time of St. Anthony, Arcella was a small village just outside the city walls called Capo di Ponte, where there was a small church, Santa Maria della Cella; next to this was a convent of the Poor Clares and a hermitage where a few friars minor lived. Tradition states that this primitive friary was founded in 1220 by St. Francis of Assisi upon his return from the Holy Land. Saint Anthony was brought here during his final moments on the evening of June 13th., 1231, while he was being transported to Padua. This is where he died.

"Finding the Saint there, the hand of the Lord descended upon him, increasing his suffering with great violence, creating much anxiety. After a brief rest, having received the Sacrament of Confession and absolution, he began to sing a hymn to the Blessed Mother, O Glorious Lady. As he finished, raising his eyes to heaven with a look of ecstasy, he stared straight ahead. When his fellow friar who was holding him asked what he saw, he replied 'I see my Lord'. At last, that holy soul, freed from the prison of the flesh, was absorbed in the abyss of light." (Vita Assidua).

The cell where St. Anthony died is preserved inside a large church built in 1895 on the site of previous structures and enlarged in 1930. Source: Messenger of Saint Anthony

St. Anthony's Email Bag - Little Answered Prayers 4

We receive many brief stories of gratitude for Saint Anthony's help sent to us, here a few of the more recent ones:

"The diamond in my ring fell out while at work. I prayed to St. Anthony that night and the next day. I went out to my car after work, (the day after I lost it) saw something shiny on the ground but wasn't going to pick it up because it looked rectangular. Good thing I did because it was my diamond, on the ground by my car in the parking lot! It was indeed a miracle. Thank you St. Anthony!" -L.M.

"I had misplaced a file in the office with suppliers invoices and it was needed immediately. I did not have the slightest idea of where it would be as I am not the only one handling the file. We looked for it and my colleague already gave up on it. I remembered that prayer to St. Anthony would be of great need. I prayed the prayer on this link, and after praying the second time I do not know what led me to the server room. I found it there as it was the only place we had not looked for. No one would imagine it would be found there. I thank God for the answered prayer through St. Anthony. To God be Glory Forever…" -K

"My sincere thanks to St. Anthony for helping me locate an envelope with a credit card in it." -M.D.

"My family borrowed my keys and lost my work office key. I have been praying for months and last night my grandson found them. Thank you St. Anthony." -L.M.G.

"I am truly Blessed the Saint Anthony helped me to find my two precious rings. I had looked everywhere. Then at midnight last night I got out of bed and found them in a basket in my office. Very exciting. Thank you Saint Anthony for all your help." -A-M.S.

"I lost my car keys yesterday, the power went out, and when it came back on I was rummaging through everything I own, and I prayed to Saint Anthony. I thought about it all day and when I came back someone where I lived had my keys!" -C.B.

"Thank you St. Anthony as with your help we found our lost item which belonged to my grandson, given to him by his grandfather. Amen." -Anon.

"I searched all over my house for my specs - I was thinking I must have thrown them out, then I knew there was a prayer for lost things. I googled it and found St. Anthony and gave a pray for them. Guess what, I found them in the kitchen - thank you St. Anthony." -M.B.

"I had misplaced my cupboard key and could not find it anywhere. My purse, atm cards and other important documents were inside the cupboard. In total desperation I said a prayer to St. Anthony to show me where to look. I searched in the area that was constantly coming in my head and found the key. My gratitude to St. Anthony for helping me. Sorry for not publishing this earlier." -J.F.

Many people, perhaps most, will say these are all little coincidences, chance happenings. But when they happen to you personally, you know they aren't just a coincidence, you can tell the difference. So, say this popular prayer to St. Anthony the next time you can't find something: 'Good St. Anthony look around, something's lost and must be found'. And then, when you find what you were looking for, don't forget to say a little prayer of thanksgiving~

St. Anthony's Email Bag - Little Answered Prayers 1
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