Anthony was born in 1195 in Lisbon, the capital of Portugal. His baptism name was Ferdinand. Born into a wealthy family, Antony joined the Augustinian Church at the age of 15. Satisfied with Anthony’s prayers, meditation and good deeds, Infant Jesus appeared and kissed him affectionately. This is indicated by the image of Anthony carrying Infant Jesus in his arms.
In 1920 the bodies of the first martyrs of the Franciscan Church were brought to Coimbra. Anthony, burning with love for the Lord, longed to die a martyr in his heart. For this reason, he joined the Franciscan Church and applied for permission to go to the land of the anti-Christians as a missionary. Reluctantly, Anthony was granted permission.
He returned to Morocco hoping to be martyred by preaching the gospel to Muslims, but God’s will was to the contrary. He fell ill during the voyage and returned to Italy. In 1221 he went to Assisi to attend the general assembly of the Franciscan Church, but no one paid attention. Arriving at the monastery in Forley, Anthony engaged in kitchen work and prayer. In the meantime, under obedience, Antony yielded to a casual sermon at a priestly ordination ceremony. After hearing the significance of this sermon, Francis of Assisi commissioned Anthony to preach throughout Italy. Crowds thronged to hear Anthony preach. One day when there were no listeners, Antony turned to the sea and preached to the fish. The fish came in droves and listened to the sermon. Antony’s sermons caused the heretics to accept the faith.
In the midst of his activities in France, a Jew challenged Antony, arguing that God is not present in divine grace. He will starve his ass for three days; On the third day, give it some food. Anthony should bring Holy Eucharist and the jew should bring food. The Jew said that if the donkey gave up food and bowed down to the Lord, he could believe in the presence of God in the Holy Eucharist. Accepting the challenge, Antony brought the Holy Eucharist around on the appointed day and extended food to the Jewish donkey. The donkey did not look at the food but bowed his head to the Holy Eucharist.
He spent the whole day preaching. The night was spent in prayer. Someone who observed the prayerful Antony through the keyhole saw the Mother of God handing Infant Jesus over to Antony. Anthony died on June 13, 1231, exhausted from work and remedial work. A year later, when Pope Gregory II canonized Pope Anthony, the bells in Lisbon rang automatically.