How did Saint Anthony write?

The following is a brief anthology from the Sermones, which offers the chance to "hear" some expressions of his thought and his spirituality. Saint Anthony writes with inspiration coming directly from the word of God, which he cites from memory. Also common are references to the great Fathers of the Church. Saint Anthony's Sermones are a biblical and knowledgeable itinerary offered to whomever wishes to approach God and change life, guided by his Word.

These are brief, but intense passages, taken from the over 1260 pages of the volume of sermons in which they are included. This volume was translated and edited by padre Giordano Tollardo and edited by Edizioni Messaggero di sant'Antonio.

Christ's passion attracts many to him, more than the rest of his life. Thus is his saying fulfilled (John 13, 32): When I shall be lifted up from the earth, I shall attract everyone to me!

For four reasons, as I see it, the Lord showed the apostles his hands, his rib and his feet.

1. First, to make it clear that he had really been resurrected, and to eliminate any doubt.

2. Second, so that the dove, that is, the Church or the faithful soul, could make a nest in his wounds, where it could hide itself from the presence of the sparrow-hawk that threatens to kidnap it.

3. Third, to imprint in our hearts, as a sign, the stigmata of his passion.

4. Fourth, to beg us to share his suffering, so that we could avoid crucifying him again with the nails of our sins.

Therefore, he shows us his hands and his rib, saying, "Look at how the hands that shaped you have been pierced with nails! Here is the rib from which you faithful, my Church, were generated, like Eve from the chest of Adam. It has been opened by a lance, to open the entrance to paradise for you, the entrance that was closed by the cherub with the flaming sword." In fact, the virtue of the blood that flowed from the rib of Christ distanced the angel and softened the sword, while the water flowing out from the rib put out the flame.

The Holy Spirit

Fire is, by nature, bodiless and invisible. But, when near some body it assumes a different colour, depending on the material that burns. In the same way, the Holy Spirit can not be seen, except by means of the creatures in which he operates.

And all were full of Holy Spirit (Acts 2, 4). They were full of Holy Spirit, which alone can fill the soul. In fact, the whole world can not fill it.

And they began to speak various languages, depending on how the Holy Spirit let them express themselves (Acts., 2, 4). He who overflows with Holy Spirit speaks various languages. The various languages are the different testimonials of Christ, which are:

• humility


• poverty


• patience and


• obedience

We speak these languages when we show others these virtues in ourselves. Speaking is something alive when our deeds speak! Words end, deeds speak! We are full of words, but empty of deeds and, for this reason we incur the malediction of the Lord, he who damned the fig tree in which he found only leaves, and no fruit.

Gregory writes, "The law of the preacher is to realise in facts that which he proclaims in words. In vain he brags of knowing the law of God, he who destroys his own teachings with his actions." The apostles, on the other hand, spoke in the way that the Holy Spirit allowed them to express themselves. Blessed be he who speaks as inspired by the Holy Spirit, and not by his own soul!"

Saint Anthony's spiritual testament

Life or death proceed from three things:

• the heart,
• the tongue and
• the hand.

The heart symbolises the consensus of good or evil; the tongue, our expression in words; the hand, our actions. If we have renounced the Lord in these three ways, fine: treating evil with its contrary, let us praise Him in these same ways.

He who does not have faith, or agrees to moral sin, renounces with his heart. Stephen says in Acts 7, 35, "They had renounced Moses, saying, "Who made you prince and judge above us?" Moses, which means "aquatic," represents faith, which is nurtured with the water of baptism, or the grace of repentance. Faith is the first virtue with which the sinner judges himself and condemns the evil done. He who has no faith or who agrees to mortal sin renounces Moses and wants neither prince nor judge above him.

He who, through lies, destroys truth or denigrates his neighbour, renounces Christ with his tongue. Peter says (Acts 3, 13-14), "In the presence of Pilate you refused the Just and asked for the release of a murderer." Pilate, which means "mouth of the hammerer," is the lie and denigration. He who hammers and ruins the truth with lies and his neighbour's charity with denigration renounces Christ.

In addition, he who acts perversely in his deeds renounces Christ with his hand. He refuses God with his actions, says the Apostle (Tt 1, 16). Therefore, those who renounce Christ in the darkness of sin, repent at the preaching of the word of God, so that in the light of repentance they can confess together with Peter three times: I love, I love, I love!

I love with my heart,

by means of faith and devotion;

I love with my tongue,

affirming truth and edifying my neighbour;

I love with my hand,

by means of pure actions.

Eulogy to silence and solitude

God gives peace to the soul in the solitude of the mind and the body. This is spoken of in Lamentations 3, 28-29: he will sit alone and will be quiet, in order to rise above himself; he will put his mouth in the dust.

In this sentence, five things are mentioned that are necessary for any just man:

1. peace of the soul, in the words: he will sit;
2. separation from earthly things, in the word: alone;
3. silence of the mouth, in the addition of: and will be quiet;
4. elevation in contemplation: to rise above himself;

5. memory of one's own fragility: he will put his mouth in the dust, to speak of this, mindful of that which is written: You are dust and will return to dust (Gen. 3, 19).

The barque of repentance and conversion

At least four things are needed to pilot a barque: mast, sail, oars and anchor.

1. The mast symbolises the heart's contrition;

2. the sail, the mouth's confession; in fact, confession must be tied to contrition as the sail is tied to the mast;

3. the oars, the deeds of reparation: fasting, prayer, alms;
4. the anchor, the memory of death.

As an anchor holds a ship back from sinking on the rocks, in the same way the memory of death holds back our soul, so it will not be founder in sin. Siracide, 7, 40 speaks of this: Remember your end, and you will never fall into sin. He who wishes to pass from the shore of this mortal life to the shore of immortality, arriving at the heavenly city of Jerusalem, must embark on the boat of repentance, according to the exhortation of the Apostle (El. 4, 23-24).

Renew yourselves in the spirit of your minds,

in the contrition in your heart,

and clothe yourselves as a new man

in the confession of the mouth,

created according to God in justice and sanctity of truth

in repairing evil with good deeds.

The scent of eternal communion

Jesus says: In my Father's house, there are many homes (John 14,2). Take the pomegranate, whose seeds are all covered by the same peel, and yet each grain has its own special cell. In the same way, in glorious eternity there will be a single home, but each of you will have a private cell, since even in eternity there are different dignities, one is the splendour of the sun, another that of the moon and yet another that of the stars.

In any case, even in different splendours, the joy shall be equal, since I shall benefit from your well-being as much as from my own, and you from mine as much as from your own. An example: we are together and I hold a rose in my hand.

The rose is mine, and yet you take as much pleasure in its beauty and its fragrance as I do. In the same way, in eternal life, my glory shall be your bliss and exultance; and vice-versa.

Bodies will be so luminous in that radiance that I will be able to see myself in your face as in a mirror, and you will be able to see yourself in my face, and from that will spring an ineffable love. Augustine says, "What love will there be when each person sees his own face in the face of his brothers, as down here we each see the face of the other?". Everything will be brilliant in that splendour, nothing will be hidden from the others, nothing will be obscure.

In Apocalypse 21, 18 we read: The city of Jerusalem will be pure gold, similar to pure crystal. Jerusalem is called pure gold for the splendour of the glorified bodies which will be similar to pure crystal because, as anything that is contained in pure crystal is clearly visible from the outside, in the same way in that vision of peace all the secrets of the heart will be mutually clear, and therefore, will burn with inextinguishable, ineffable and reciprocal love.

At this time, unfortunately, we do not really love each other as we should, because we hide in the darkness, we distance each other from the secrets of our hearts, and in this way love cools and iniquity abounds.

If it were not so, I would have told you (John 14, 2), that is, if things were different I would not have kept it from you, I would have made it honestly clear that up there, there are many homes. But know that I am going to prepare a place for you. A father prepares a place for his son, even a bird readies a nest for its chicks. In this way, Christ has prepared a place for us: the tranquillity of eternal life; and even before that, he has shown us the road to take to reach it. May he be blessed in the centuries. Amen.