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Saint Anthony, patron and father, and Father's Day
This June 13 we celebrate the feast of Saint Anthony of Padua, patron saint of our city.
Our archdiocese receives its name from this Franciscan saint, born in Lisbon (Portugal) in 1195, because his spiritual brothers, the Franciscans, are the ones who planted the seed of the Gospel in our land. Our magnificent missions, real milestones of faith and culture not only for our city, but for the whole of Texas and the Southwest, are a good proof of the seeds planted by them.
Saint Anthony’s life teaches us some important lessons. Seeking for high ideals, this Portuguese young man became a Franciscan at the age of 27, and took the name of Anthony after Saint Anthony Abad, a saint of the first centuries of Christianity.
He died shortly after his 35th birthday at the Italian city of Padua. His fame of holiness at the time of his death was such that Pope Gregory XI proclaimed him a saint only one year after his passing.
Saint Anthony of Padua’s holiness has more to do with the ordinary than with the extraordinary. His fame of holiness spread especially because of his deep religious piety, his love for others, his tireless apostolic zeal, his limitless generosity and his special dedication to the poor and the needy.
It is not in vain that popular piety considers him a saint of “impossible causes,” especially when it refers to making people with financial means live in solidarity towards those in need.
Those of us who live in this archdiocese, blessed with the name of this great saint, are called to imitate the ordinary virtues that he practiced: love for God and others, fidelity to the Catholic faith in daily life and concern for the poor and defenseless.
In a few days we will also celebrate Father’s Day. For every child, his or her father is one of the most important role models in life.
Let us pray for all fathers, then, not for them to do the magical things that children imagine, but rather, that they can continue to grow in the ordinary virtues that are necessary to be a good father. The same ordinary virtues that marked Saint Anthony’s life and that made him a saint.
Let us ask, in a special way, that they may continue to be, along with their wives, true pillars of our church and society, as they live their mission of sustaining and nourishing the institution of marriage, which is the foundation of the family.
To all fathers of our archdiocese, young, and not so young, I wish a heartfelt happy and holy Father’s Day.
“ Father” is a word that in the church is used not only to describe the father of the family, but also those who lead the sacramental life of our ecclesial community: the priests.
This year, several priests of the Archdiocese of San Antonio are celebrating their jubilee. Let us thank God for the blessing of having them among us and for the gift of their priestly ministry performed with such fidelity and pastoral zeal.
Words are always insufficient to express our gratitude to those who have so faithfully and exemplarily served the church as priests. We have the certainty, however, of knowing that Jesus, the high priest, will give them a hundredfold in return.
Let us not only pray for them, but celebrate with them. Let us express our support, our joy and our thankfulness for the countless fruits of their priestly ministry.
May God, the good Father, through the intercession of our holy patron, Saint Anthony of Padua, bless all who are called to be fathers, both in the sacrament of marriage and in the ministerial priesthood.
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