The chapel was built by the locals in the small village of Kukunjevac. It is dedicated to St. Anthony, and the holy masses are celebrated twice a year. It belongs to the parish of Gaj.
The chapel is surrounded by beautiful greenery and untouched nature in the middle of the Slavonian hills. Around the chapel there is a green meadow where the faithful pilgrims can rest, get away from everyday worries and indulge in prayer with spiritual meditation away from the noise and bustle of their cities.
St. Anthony of Padua is one of the Catholic Church’s most popular saints. Saint Anthony of Padua, patron saint of lost and stolen articles, was a powerful Franciscan preacher and teacher. He’s typically portrayed holding the child Jesus—or a lily—or a book—or all three—in his arms. Many people give alms to St. Anthony Bread in thanksgiving to God for blessings received through the prayers of St. Anthony.
St. Anthony of Padua’s life is what every Christian’s life is meant to be; a steady courage to face the ups and downs of life, the call to love and forgive, to be concerned for the needs of others, to deal with crisis great and small, and to have our feet solidly on the ground of total trusting love and dependence on God.
St Anthony is beloved throughout the world and is responsive to all people and all needs. His intercessory powers before our God are awesome.
Legends about Anthony abound. But let’s turn to the known facts about him. Anthony was born in 1195 (13 years after St. Francis) in Lisbon, Portugal and given the name of Fernando at Baptism. His parents, Martin and Mary Bulhom apparently belonged to one of the prominent families of the city.
At the age of 15 he entered the religious order of St. Augustine. Monastery life was hardly peaceful for young Fernando, nor conducive to prayer and study, as his old friends came to visit frequently and engaged in vehement political discussions.
After two years he was sent to Coimbra. There he began nine years of intense study, learning the Augustinian theology that he would later combine with the Franciscan vision. Fernando was probably ordained a priest during this time.
The life of the young priest took a crucial turn when the bodies of the first five Franciscan martyrs were returned from Morocco. They had preached in the mosque in Seville, almost being martyred at the outset, but the sultan allowed them to pass on to Morocco, where, after continuing to preach Christ despite repeated warnings, they were tortured and beheaded. Now, in the presence of the queen and a huge crowd, their remains were carried in solemn procession to Fernando’s monastery.
He was overjoyed and inspired to a momentous decision. He went to the little friary in Coimbra and said, “Brother, I would gladly put on the habit of your Order if you would promise to send me as soon as possible to the land of the Saracens, that I may gain the crown of the holy martyrs.” After some challenges from the prior of the Augustinians, he was allowed to leave that priory and receive the Franciscan habit, taking the name Anthony.
True to their promise, the Franciscans allowed Anthony to go to Morocco, to be a witness for Christ, and a martyr as well. But, as often happens, the gift he wanted to give was not the gift that was to be asked of him. He became seriously ill, and after several months realized he had to go home.
He never arrived. His ship ran into storms and high winds and was blown east across the Mediterranean. Months later he arrived on the east coast of Sicily. The friars at nearby Messina, though they didn’t know him, welcomed him and began nursing him back to health. Still ailing, he wanted to attend the great Pentecost Chapter of Mats (so called because the 3,000 friars could not be housed and slept on mats). Francis was there, also sick. History does not reveal any meeting between Francis and Anthony.
Since the young man was from “out of town,” he received no assignment at the meeting, so he asked to go with a provincial superior from northern Italy. “Instruct me in the Franciscan life,” he asked, not mentioning his prior theological training. Now, like Francis, he had his first choice—a life of seclusion and contemplation in a hermitage near Montepaolo.
Perhaps we would never have heard of Anthony if he hadn’t gone to an ordination of Dominicans and Franciscans in 1222. As they gathered for a meal afterward, the provincial suggested that one of the friars give a short sermon. Quite typically, everybody ducked. So Anthony was asked to give “just something simple,” since he presumably had no education.
Anthony too demurred, but finally began to speak in a simple, artless way. The fire within him became evident. His knowledge was unmistakable, but his holiness was what really impressed everyone there.
Now he was exposed. His quiet life of prayer and penance at the hermitage was exchanged for that of a public preacher. Francis heard of Anthony’s previously hidden gifts, and Anthony was assigned to preach in northern Italy. The problem with many preachers in Anthony’s day was that their lifestyle contrasted sharply with that of the poor people to whom they preached. In our experience, it could be compared to an evangelist arriving in a slum driving a Mercedes, delivering a homily from his car and speeding off to a vacation resort. Anthony saw that words were obviously not enough. He had to show gospel poverty. People wanted more than self-disciplined, even penitent priests. They wanted genuineness of gospel living. And in Anthony they found it. They were moved by who he was, more than what he said.
Despite his efforts, not everyone listened. Legend has it that one day, faced with deaf ears; Anthony went to the river and preached to the fishes. That, reads the traditional tale, got everyone’s attention.
Anthony travelled tirelessly in both northern Italy and southern France—perhaps 400 trips—choosing to enter the cities where the heretics were strongest. Yet the sermons he has left behind rarely show him taking direct issue with the heretics. As the historian Clasen interprets it, Anthony preferred to present the grandeur of Christianity in positive ways. It was no good to prove people wrong: Anthony wanted to win them to the right, the healthiness of real sorrow and conversion, the wonder of reconciliation with a loving Father.
“Let us therefore pray to our Lord Jesus Christ that he gives us the grace to seek his Kingdom and to build within ourselves a moral Jerusalem. By doing this, we will be able to merit our place in the heavenly Jerusalem to sing Alleluia in its streets with all the saints and angels. But the One whose Kingdom is eternal for all ages must help us to do so.”
“Sweet Jesus, is there anything sweeter than you? To remember you is more delightful than everything else. Your name is joy; it is the true gate of our salvation. What else are you, Jesus, if not our Savior? Be our Redeemer. Give us the virtues of hope and love, just as you have given us faith, our primary joy. Give us the words that we need to praise you always. With the help and through the prayers of your mother. You who are blessed throughout the ages. Amen.”
“Behold the Cross of the Lord! Begone, you evil powers! The Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered. Alleluia!”
“To the ends of the earth…proclaim the word of joy…. ‘Ask, that your joy may be full.’ Proclaim it not only to the just who are in the Church’s midst, but to the outer bounds of the earth…., that is, outside the precepts of the Lord, which are for us the bounds within which we must live. Let them hear the word of joy so that they might obtain the full joy which has no bounds. May Jesus Christ lead us to this joy. Amen.”
<3>Prayer for the Spirit of Salvation“We beseech you, Lord Jesus, that in the seven brief days of this life you help us to conceive the spirit of salvation and bring to birth through a sorrowful heart an heir to eternal life. May we merit to drink from the river of living water and rejoice together with you in heavenly Jerusalem. Grant us this, you, who are blessed, glorious, laudable, lovable, sweet, and immortal through all centuries. And let every creature shout: Amen. Alleluia.”
St. Anthony of Padua is a favourite saint of many people. Called the “Wonder Worker” because of the many miracles with which God has favoured him, St. Anthony has traditionally been the refuge of all who have lost things, whether temporal or spiritual. If you want to express your devotion to St. Anthony, you can make a novena of nine or thirteen Tuesdays, or of nine consecutive days, by using any of the following prayers.
If you ask for miracles,
Death, error, all calamities,
The leprosy and demons fly,
And health succeeds infirmities.
The sea obeys, and fetters break,
And lifeless limbs you do restore;
While treasures lost are found again
When young or old your aid implore.
All dangers vanish at your prayer,
And direst needs do quickly flee,
Let those who know your power proclaim—
Let Paduans say—these are of you.
The sea obeys, and fetters break,
And lifeless limbs you do restore;
While treasures lost are found again
When young or old your aid implore.
To Father, Son may glory be,
And Holy Spirit eternally.
The sea obeys, and fetters break,
And lifeless limbs you do restore;
While treasures lost are found again
When young or old your aid implore.
Pray for us, blessed Anthony,
That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray:
Almighty God, you have given St. Anthony to your people as an outstanding preacher and a
ready helper in time of need. With his assistance may we follow the Gospel of Christ and
know the help of your grace in every difficulty. Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
After you died, St. Anthony, God chose to make your holiness known to the world and to draw people by working miracles in answer to prayers made in your name. Since then, people have asked God to continue to honour you by working wonders through your intercession. Those who have experienced the power of prayers offered in your name have told how God has answered them. God has healed the sick, restored peace of mind, relieved poverty and granted favours of all kinds. Now in this time of need, I ask you, St. Anthony, to pray with me for the things I desire. I pray that God may again give me a sign of loving care and providence, and that through you, God may draw us all to the fullness of life and love in eternity. Amen.
St. Anthony, when you prayed, your stolen book of prayers was given back to you. Pray now for all of us who have lost things precious and dear. Pray for all who have lost faith, hope or the friendship of God. Pray for us who have lost friends or relatives by death. Pray for all who have lost peace of mind or spirit. Pray that we may be given new hope, new faith, new love. Pray that lost things, needful and helpful to us, may be returned to our keeping. Or, if we must continue in our loss, pray that we may be given Christ’s comfort and peace. Amen.
St. Anthony, your love for the infant Jesus made him present to you to see and hold in your arms. Help us to see and love Jesus in all the poor and suffering of the world. Move us to clothe, feed and help Jesus, in all unwanted, abused and abandoned children and people. Lead us, for the sake of Jesus, who became a child, like one of us, to reverence and protect all human life from its beginning to its end. Amen.
St. Anthony, God has helped me abundantly through your prayer and has strengthened me in my need. I thank God and I thank you. Accept this prayer and my serious resolve which I now renew, to live always in the love of Jesus and of my neighbour. Continue to shield me by your protection and pray to God for the final grace of one day entering the kingdom of heaven to sing with you the everlasting mercies of God. Amen.
