hand and heart

The recent post office troubles have impacted our regular fundraising efforts. Please consider supporting the Register and Catholic journalism by using one of the methods below:

  • Donate online
  • Donate by e-transfer to accounting@catholicregister.org
  • Donate by telephone: 416-934-3410 ext. 406 or toll-free 1-855-441-4077 ext. 406

St. Anthony relic comes to Toronto

By 
  • March 5, 2010
{mosimage}TORONTO - A relic of St. Anthony of Padua will be returning to Canada accompanied by three Italian Franciscan friars this month.

St. Anthony, commonly referred to as the patron saint of lost articles, joined the Franciscan order in 1221 at the age of 26. He is a Doctor of the church and is typically portrayed in art with a book and the Infant Child Jesus.

The first class relic, which, according to St. Anthony of Padua parish in Toronto, is related to a body part associated with speech, will visit two Toronto parishes. It will begin its journey at St. Anthony of Padua March 10 with a 7 p.m. Mass, followed by a reception where the Franciscan friars answer questions. The relic will also be displayed on March 11 following a 7:30 p.m. Mass at St. Bonaventure Church.

“Relics are a concrete bridge, a link of love, between us and St. Anthony. So when we pass by and touch the relic of St. Anthony, it is neither a magical act nor a superstition, far from it, it is an act of love,” said Friar Mario Conte, OFM Conv, editor of the international edition of the Messenger of St. Anthony magazine.

Conte will be with the relic in Toronto, accompanied by Friar Danilo Salezze, OFM Conv., director of the Messenger of St. Anthony, and Friar Luciano Segafreddo, OFM Conv, editor of Italian edition of the magazine.

Although St. Anthony is the patron saint of lost objects, people are invited to ask his intercession for those who have lost peace of mind or who have lost a sense of direction.

Anna Marziliano, a parishioner of St. Anthony of Padua parish, said being close to a relic helps remind people of the saint, much in the same way that you would want to be close to an object related to a loved one.

“If I have something that belonged to the person I loved, I feel closer to them when I see it or touch it. So it’s the same with the saints’ relics,” Marziliano said.

For more information contact Marziliano at (416) 690-9904.

More in this category: « Record crowd attends 2010 Ordinandi Dinner in Toronto Toronto Catholics raise $3.7 million for Haiti »

Please support The Catholic Register

Unlike many media companies, The Catholic Register has never charged readers for access to the news and information on our website. We want to keep our award-winning journalism as widely available as possible. But we need your help.

For more than 125 years, The Register has been a trusted source of faith-based journalism. By making even a small donation you help ensure our future as an important voice in the Catholic Church. If you support the mission of Catholic journalism, please donate today. Thank you.

DONATE