St Anthony's Bread. "An equally famous legend is the one called “Saint Anthony’s Bread.” The oldest version of Saint Anthony’s life extant is called the Rigaldina, and it recounts the period when the …More
St Anthony's Bread.
"An equally famous legend is the one called “Saint Anthony’s Bread.” The oldest version of Saint Anthony’s life extant is called the Rigaldina, and it recounts the period when the Basilica of Saint Anthony (after the saint’s death) was being constructed in Padua, Italy. It seems that a young mother had a little boy named Thomas, who was 20 months old. It so happened that she left her son alone in the kitchen. Busy mother that she was—like all mothers are—she probably had to attend to something in the interim and would return shortly to her kitchen duties as well as her son. However, Thomas—like all little boys everywhere—couldn’t be still for long: he saw a tub of water and decided it was play time. Unfortunately, he ended up head first in the tub of water; and when his mother returned, she found her son lifeless. The mother let out a desperate scream and then, an even more desperate prayer: she called upon the saint of Padua in her hour of distress. She made a vow: if her son was revived, she would donate bread equaling her son’s weight and feed it to the poor. The earnest prayer was heard and the child was brought back to life and the poor were thereafter fed. And the legend of “Saint Anthony’s Bread” began. The legend of Saint Anthony’s Bread was also furthered by another instance, but this time it involved a lost key. It so happened that a French shopkeeper named Louise Booffier of Toulon had lost the key to her shop door. So, like the lady in Padua, she vowed to give bread to the poor if somehow the locksmith could open the bolted door without incident; so she prayed that she could get into her shop. The miracle happened and she kept her promise. She started the charity of giving bread to the poor and thereafter on Saint Anthony’s feast day—June 13—loaves of breads are blessed in churches, signifying gratitude for favors received through the saint’s intercession." – Joseph McAuley, from here. Mosaic from St Francis of Assisi church in NYC.
Source: Lawrence OP on Flickr
"An equally famous legend is the one called “Saint Anthony’s Bread.” The oldest version of Saint Anthony’s life extant is called the Rigaldina, and it recounts the period when the Basilica of Saint Anthony (after the saint’s death) was being constructed in Padua, Italy. It seems that a young mother had a little boy named Thomas, who was 20 months old. It so happened that she left her son alone in the kitchen. Busy mother that she was—like all mothers are—she probably had to attend to something in the interim and would return shortly to her kitchen duties as well as her son. However, Thomas—like all little boys everywhere—couldn’t be still for long: he saw a tub of water and decided it was play time. Unfortunately, he ended up head first in the tub of water; and when his mother returned, she found her son lifeless. The mother let out a desperate scream and then, an even more desperate prayer: she called upon the saint of Padua in her hour of distress. She made a vow: if her son was revived, she would donate bread equaling her son’s weight and feed it to the poor. The earnest prayer was heard and the child was brought back to life and the poor were thereafter fed. And the legend of “Saint Anthony’s Bread” began. The legend of Saint Anthony’s Bread was also furthered by another instance, but this time it involved a lost key. It so happened that a French shopkeeper named Louise Booffier of Toulon had lost the key to her shop door. So, like the lady in Padua, she vowed to give bread to the poor if somehow the locksmith could open the bolted door without incident; so she prayed that she could get into her shop. The miracle happened and she kept her promise. She started the charity of giving bread to the poor and thereafter on Saint Anthony’s feast day—June 13—loaves of breads are blessed in churches, signifying gratitude for favors received through the saint’s intercession." – Joseph McAuley, from here. Mosaic from St Francis of Assisi church in NYC.
Source: Lawrence OP on Flickr