ST ANTHONY THE ABBOT - FR CONRAD SALDANHA

ST. ANTHONY THE ABBOT  - The Patron Saint of the DD ministries

Saint Anthony the Abbot (c 251–356), was also known as St. Anthony the Great and Father of All Monks.

Anthony was born to a wealthy family in 251 AD at Coma, a village in Middle Egypt. One day Anthony was convicted by Mat 19, 21…"Go, sell what thou hast, and give to the poor." He went home and gifted his land and sold his belongings and gave the money to the needy, saving only what he thought necessary to maintain his sister who also joined a Christian nunnery.

Anthony, at 21 became a hermit and retired to a solitary place and occupied himself with manual labor, prayer, and religious reading. His only food was bread and a little salt, and he drank nothing but water. His bed was a rush mat. He soon became a model of humility, piety, and self-discipline.

The devil assailed him by various temptations like the joys of family life, the good works Anthony might have done in the world with his money, and the futility of the hermit's existence. When repulsed by the young novice, the devil changed his mode of attack, and harassed him night and day with gross and obscene thoughts. Anthony resisted by a strict watchfulness over his senses and imagination, controlling them by austere fasts, acts of humility, and prayer. At last Satan himself appeared in visible form, first as a seductive woman, then as a black and terrifying man. Anthony remained unmoved, and the fiend confessed himself vanquished.

In quest now of greater solitude, he hid himself in an old tomb in the desert, where a friend brought him a little bread from time to time. Here Satan again attacked him and deafened him with loud noises. Once, Athanasius says, he was so grievously beaten that when his friend arrived he lay almost dead. As Anthony came to himself, he called out to the devils, "See, here I am! Do your worst! Nothing shall separate me from Christ my Lord." At this, the demons reappeared and again filled the tomb with a terrible clamor and specters of ravening beasts in hideous shapes until a ray of heavenly light, breaking through, chased them away. "Where wast Thou," Anthony cried, "my Lord and my Master? Why wast Thou not here from the beginning of my conflict to give me succor?" "Anthony," replied a voice, "I was here the whole time; I stood by thee, and watched thy conflict. And because thou hast manfully withstood thy enemies, I will forever protect thee, and will make thy name famous throughout the earth." At this the saint rose up to pray and give thanks.

In his fifty-fifth year he came down from his mountain retreat and founded his first monastery. 

We are told of a temptation to despair, which he overcame by prayer and hard manual labor. Notwithstanding his stringent self-discipline, he always maintained that perfection consisted not in mortification of the flesh but in love of God. He taught his monks to have eternity always present to their minds and to perform every act with all the fervor of their souls, as if it were to be their last.

In his extreme old age he made another trip to Alexandria, expressly to refute the Arians, and went about preaching that Christ the Son was not a creature, but of the same eternal substance as the Father. The people flocked to hear him, and even pagans, struck by the dignity of his bearing, gathered around him, saying, "We want to see the man of God." He made many converts and worked several miracles. The governor of Egypt invited him to stay longer in the city, but he declined, saying, "Fish die if they are taken from the water; so does a monk wither away if he forsakes his solitude."

This first great "Desert Father" lived to the remarkable age of 105, without sickness, his sight unimpaired, his teeth still sound. Many miracles wrought by Anthony's intercession were reported.

Anthony is appealed to against infectious diseases, in particular herpes zoster, hence shingles are known as "Anthony's fire" in Italy and Malta. eczema; epilepsy; epileptics; ergotism; erysipelas; relief from pestilence; skin diseases; skin rashes.

The DDoor Ministries feel honoured to have him as their Patron Saint and entrust every retreatant into his protection.

Celebrated in many churches on his Feast Day, January 17 in the Western church.

Prayer:
Father, you called Saint Anthony to renounce the world and serve you in the solitude of the desert. By his prayers and example, may we learn to deny ourselves with thanksgiving and praise in our hearts. Help us to love you above all things, especially as we seek to endure the trials and troubles of life.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
St Anthony, the Abbot, Patron of DDoor Ministries, Pray for us.