Every June 13th we celebrate the feast day of the extraordinary St. Anthony of Padua. When we hear about St. Anthony of Padua (1195-1231), almost immediately we think about his great preaching, his astounding miracles, his love for the Child Jesus, and his wonderful virtues. In fact, he is famous for his title of ‘Miracle Worker’. Many people have a great devotion to him, and experience his help in finding things that are lost. Whatever our needs are, he is always able to help us in some way whenever we pray to him with sincerity and confidence.

During his life, everyone knew he was a holy and wise teacher. Almost whenever Anthony preached, he had to do it outdoors in open fields because there was no cathedral or basilica large enough to contain the thousands of people who wanted to hear him.

In addition to wisdom, God gave Anthony a power over nature that almost seemed limitless. Miracles would occur wherever he went - sometimes even when he least expected them.

Most of all, St. Anthony was praiseworthy for his sanctity. This was how he truly won the hearts and souls of the people. In fact, when he died in 1231, he was proclaimed a Saint only eleven months later! Even the great Sts. Francis of Assisi and Clare, who lived around his time, weren’t canonized until two years after they died. There have been many awesome Saints who have been canonized centuries after their death.

All of these things show us how very, very special St. Anthony of Padua is.

But can you guess what St. Anthony’s occupation was before his preaching career began? Or how he became so famous?

St. Anthony entered the monastery as any ordinary man would have. There was nothing striking about him compared to the other monks. Yes, Anthony was kind and virtuous to others, but he didn’t do anything extraordinary. His main job was simply to wash dishes in the monastery kitchen! Day in and day out, Anthony would stand at a sink, scrubbing all the dirty dishes. It seemed likely to everyone, including himself, that he would remain a Franciscan dishwasher for the rest of his life. Anthony didn’t mind, he was happy for wherever God wanted him. But God had other plans for him, and soon something happened which changed his hidden life forever.

Three members of Anthony’s order were going to be ordained, and so he and all the community were gathered to attend the ceremony. A priest was scheduled to give the sermon that day. However, when the time came for him to speak, the priest turned to Anthony’s prior and said, "I am sorry, but I wasn’t able to prepare for it, and I can’t give the sermon today."

The poor prior was very worried. There had never been an ordination without a sermon. And on top of that, the bishop himself was there for the ordination! Of course he, like the others, was expecting some spiritual wisdom to benefit by on such an important occasion. A sermon simply had to be preached. So the prior began by asking those of the monks who were specifically qualified for preaching. Having no success, the prior became desperate, and figured that any of the monks should at least be able to give a simple talk about something good and holy. Before long, the perplexed abbot was soon approaching each of the brothers in turn, asking each the same question:

"Can you preach a sermon for us?"

But each of the brothers, flustered and nervous, shook their heads. There was no way they could speak adequately about anything on such short notice. At last, the prior approached the monastery dishwasher. When the superior asked him if he could preach the sermon, Anthony wanted to decline just like everyone else had done. But looking at his poor, anxious superior, Anthony felt sorry for him.

St. Anthony did not feel prepared to preach, but told the prior that he would try. He said a prayer, and saw that God was using his superior to ask this of him. So, trusting in God to work everything out, he stood before the assembly to preach.

God spoke through Anthony and his preaching so well that the whole community was not only satisfied with what he said, but their hearts were moved. This Franciscan truly had a God-given gift and God’s grace was clearly in him! The bishop and the prior were so impressed that they soon asked Anthony to go out on preaching trips in the surrounding countryside. Anthony obeyed, and it was by this obedience and trust that he began the great adventure of his public life which God used to make him the great St. Anthony that we know and love today.

It seems strange that such a famous and powerful Saint would have started out washing dishes and scrubbing pots and pans. But what is important to remember is that whether Anthony was cleaning dishes or cleaning souls, he always prayed for help to do it well, and in the way which would make God the happiest. That was what made him a Saint – loving God completely. He wanted to please God in everything he did, no matter what it was. And God rewarded this love with the wisdom and miracles St. Anthony is famed for.

Miracles, great minds, fame – none of these things make a person a Saint. There were Saints who had never had any of them. Complete love for God – this makes a person a Saint – and with God’s help, any of us can have that love.

God didn’t just have Anthony wash dishes until He could finally figure out a way to make Anthony a Saint. Anthony’s path to God was, for a time, to be simple and unnoticed, and to clean the monastery dishes. His hidden life prepared him for his public life. How so? Well, while most people would probably be quite willing to be a world-famous preacher, how many would be willing to wash dishes, day in and day out? God wanted to see if He could trust Anthony with boring tasks before He would trust him with great ones. If Anthony had not proven to God that all he wanted to do was God’s will - even by being faithful in his hidden life at the monastery… he would never have become the great Franciscan preacher that we all love.

And like St. Anthony’s life, God is always with each of us, arranging our lives in the most loving and perfect way - so that we can become Saints. Like St. Anthony, though, we have to do our part, and seek to do God’s Will every day, and in everything.

Let us remember to pray for this grace every day. And let us also remember to frequently ask the help of our good and powerful friend, the dishwasher and wonder-worker, St. Anthony of Padua.