Saint Anthony the Abbot, Father of Monks
S. Antonii Abbatis
Saint Anthony of Egypt, called the Father of Monks, withdrew into the desert to seek God alone and became the great pioneer and pattern of the monastic life.
Saint Anthony was born about the year 251 in Egypt, of Christian parents. His life is known to us in remarkable detail, for it was written by Saint Athanasius of Alexandria, who knew those who had known the saint, and whose Life of Anthony shaped the whole tradition of Christian monasticism.
The call of the Gospel
As a young man, Anthony heard in church the words of the Lord to the rich young man: “If thou wilt be perfect, go, sell what thou hast, and give to the poor, and come, follow me.” Taking these words as spoken to himself, he gave away his inheritance, provided for his sister, and devoted himself to a life of prayer, labour, and penance. In time he withdrew ever deeper into the Egyptian desert, seeking solitude with God.
Saint Athanasius relates that in his solitude Anthony was sorely tried by temptations and by the assaults of the evil one, which he overcame by prayer, fasting, humility, and steadfast trust in Christ. His holiness drew others to imitate him, until the desert, in the famous phrase, was made a city of monks who looked to him as their father and guide.
Father of Monks
Though he loved solitude, Saint Anthony came forth when the Church had need of him: to strengthen the confessors during persecution, and later to support Saint Athanasius and the faithful against the Arian heresy by the witness of his orthodoxy. He lived to a great age and died about the year 356, having reached, it is said, more than a hundred years.
Saint Anthony is venerated as the Father of Monks, the pattern of those who renounce the world to seek God in prayer and ascetic labour. His feast on the seventeenth of January honours the desert life and the victory of grace over temptation. From of old it has also been a day on which the faithful in many places seek God’s blessing upon their animals, mindful of the saint who lived close to God’s creatures in the wilderness.
The Collect
May the intercession of blessed Anthony the Abbot commend us unto thee, we beseech thee, O Lord: that what we cannot obtain by our own merits, we may obtain through his patronage.
Intercessio nos, quæsumus, Dómine, beáti Antónii Abbátis comméndet: ut, quod nostris méritis non valémus, ejus patrocínio assequámur.
Patronage
He is the patron of monks and hermits, of butchers and basket-makers, and is invoked for the protection of domestic animals and against skin diseases.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar his feast is observed on 17 January as an obligatory memorial.
Common Questions
When is the feast of Saint Anthony the Abbot?
His feast is kept on 17 January in both the 1962 Roman Missal (Third Class) and the modern calendar (memorial).
Who was Saint Anthony the Abbot?
He was a third- and fourth-century Egyptian who gave away his possessions to follow the Gospel and withdrew into the desert to seek God in prayer and penance. He is honoured as the Father of Monks. His life was written by Saint Athanasius.
Why are animals blessed on his feast?
By long custom in many places, the faithful bring their animals to be blessed on Saint Anthony’s day. The practice grew from his patronage of animals and from his life lived close to God’s creatures in the wilderness; it is a sign of gratitude for the gifts of creation and a plea for God’s providence over them.
See where this feast falls in the Church’s year on the liturgical calendar, or find a Traditional Latin Mass near you.
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