St. Anthony, This Is The Big One!

When I was about 10 years old, my father created a special ring for me to wear that was made of pure silver. He beat it into a ring from a silver half dollar. He made it slightly large for me so I could grow into it. A couple of days later, I was playing in the yard, and the ring slung off. It was a large yard; and we looked and looked for it for a long time, but we never could find it.

 About 44 years later, I woke up on a Saturday morning, and the thought came to me - I will bet that ring is still out there in that yard somewhere; why did I not rent a metal detector and try to find it. I drove to our former house and asked the owner if I could one day in the near future try to find the ring, and she was fine with that. Soon afterward, I went to a friend's rental shop and when I mentioned how I was going to use the metal detector, he told me, with a purpose like that, he was not going to charge me. 

I hardly ever used intercessory prayer at that time. It was raining that day, and I thought - am I half nuts, getting out here in the rain in this big yard to search for a ring we could not even find or run across more than four decades ago? I should not have thought it to be pointless, but this was so off the wall. I prayed, St. Anthony, this is the big one!

I started getting hits on the metal detector, put markers down so I could start digging afterward, but saw the markers went in a perfectly straight line, showing I was finding ground pipe. I then kept adjusting the device for lesser levels of depth, but got no results. 

After a while, the rain was coming down and I thought again, is this really very smart, trying to find a ring that I was maybe never meant to find? I prayed - I was going to say a Chaplet, which is of course about 5 minutes, and if I did not find the ring, I was quitting. 

I did not pay much attention as to how I adjusted the metal detector, but I had a hit. I dug straight down about a foot, chopped up the dirt, and there it was! This was the first place I dug! It was hard to describe the elation I felt, and still feel when I recall it. I thought - I will tell of St. Anthony's intersession through this experience whenever I get the chance. 

I cleaned the mud off of the ring, took it to a nearby jeweler, and asked if she could shine it up for me. As you can see in the photo, silver shines up pretty nicely, even after being in the ground for 44 years. I put it into my then-11 year old son's possession.

Thank God for this encounter! And I, as well as many others love to say, St. Anthony, pray for us!

 

 Thank you F.S. for your amazing story of Saint Anthony’s assistance in finding that special ring. Have a story of Saint Anthony’s help of your own to share? Email it to us and we will post it on the blog~

 

  

The Feast of St. Anthony of Padua, 2024

Join the Franciscan Friars of Saint Anthony on Facebook on June 13th., St. Anthony's Feast Day, at 7:30 PM CET for the Mass in English from the Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua. 

All are also invited to click here to light a virtual candle and write your prayers to St. Anthony so that he can intercede for you and your loved ones. Saint Anthony has always been close to his devotees who confidently entrust their hopes to him. Light a Virtual Candle to entrust him with your intention, to thank him or to remember those who are no longer here.