In the course of the summer of the year 1228 the blessed Anthony set out for Bologna, the place of his residence. He stopped at Ferrara, which was on the way. There our hero had not to combat heresy but only to uproot the vices which dishonor faith, and wherever they are found invariably increase the number of fallen humanity. The church of Saint Mary del Vado was bis chosen sanctuary and the principal scene of his preachings. He praised, with his heart full of gratitude, the eminent prerogatives of her whose beauty he had seen in his ecstasies. As he advanced in his apostolic career, his devotion to Mary increased and his confidence became more unalterable.
In the meantime, our saint received from the General of the Order, John Parent, the difficult mission of establishing peace in Florence, which was torn by two rival factions. Two powerful families disputed among themselves for supremacy, and transformed the city into a vast and often bloody arena, to the great prejudice of justice and liberty. Anthony obeyed all the instructions of the General. He hastened to Florence, and there preached during the Advent of 1228 and the Lent of the following year, and during this long sojourn exercised all the resources of his zeal to extinguish the fire of civil war.
One day he had accepted an invitation to preach at the obsequies of one of the dignitaries of Florence. He selected as his text the words of the Gospel, "Where thy treasure is, there is thy heart also." All at once he stopped. He had beheld the soul of the departed one in the flames of hell, the just chastisement of his usurious injustices and his exactions. "This rich man is dead," he said, in a voice slow and grave, "and he is buried in hell! Go and open his strong box and you will find his heart there." The relatives and friends were astounded and overwhelmed by the statement. They hastened to the house of the dead man, and discovered, as the saint had said, the still warm heart of the departed lying in the midst of his golden pieces. The scene was at once tragic and sad. The minds of all were opened by the thought of eternity. The rival families put aside their arms, and concluded a peace, which, unfortunately, was only of short duration.
After the Lent of 1229 Anthony visited the convents of his province; he made new foundations and preached from place to place in Lombardy. At Varese and at Brescia the saint created new homes of Franciscan life. At Milan, at Verona, and at Mantua, he applied himself particularly to the conversion of the Vaudois, and had the happiness to receive very many abjurations of heresy.
In 1228, less than two years after the death of Saint Francis, the Supreme Pontiff, Gregory IX, had made his triumphal entry into Assisi, escorted by cardinals, bishops, mitred abbots, and pilgrims from every country. He had placed on the head of the great monastic reformer the crown of the saints, and had ordered Father Elie to construct a basilica worthy of the treasure it was to contain. In the spring of 1230 the basilica was ready, and on the 25th of May it was opened by the pontifical commission and received the sacred bones of the seraphic patriarch, temporarily placed in the church of Saint George.
The provincial of Bologna was prevented by his apostolical labors from assisting at the feasts of the canonization. The translation of the relics was in a measure a compensation. He was so happy again to see the brethren, to venerate the relics of the holy founder, to cast himself at the feet of his immediate successor, John Parent, and to tell him how peaceful Florence, the pearl of Tuscany, had become.
The ceremonies of translation took place with great pomp and magnificence, and was enriched by all sorts of heavenly favors. Saint Anthony joined with the people in thanking the Lord for so many graces, and invoking with greater love his blessed father who was now so magnificently glorified.
After the festival of translation came the General Chapter of Minors, which was held as formerly at the Portiuncula.
Saint Anthony asked to be discharged from all offices so that he might give himself exclusively to preaching. John Parent was not disposed to grant the request, although legitimate and presented with so much humility; he, however, allowed the saint to select his place of residence. Anthony selected Padua "because of the faith of the people, the attachment he had for them, and for their devotion to the Friars." The General and the Chapter gave him again the most striking testimony of their confidence. He was delegated with Father Leon to solicit from Gregory IX an authentic declaration of the testament of Saint Francis, and to repair, in the name of the brethren, the outrage done to the majesty of the Apostolic See by the more than irregular acts of Father Elie, who, of his own authority, had set aside the entire programme prepared by the Pope for the feasts of the translation of the body of the holy founder.
Gregory IX did not conceal his pleasure at seeing Anthony. The Holy Pontiff had not forgotten the labors of his visitor, and to all his requests he gave favorable replies. It was said that the Holy Father wished to attach him to the pontifical court, and, perhaps, to place the purple on his shoulders. To decline these honors the Franciscan had only to repeat the words of Saint Francis: "Lord, my children call themselves Brothers Minor because they occupy the last rank in the Church. Have a care lest you take them away under pretext of raising them higher." The pontiff did not insist, and the humble monk, left to his liberty, turned his steps to the mountains of Alverne. He visited the mountain which had been a witness of the ecstasies of the seraphic patriarch, and also of his stigmata. He kissed the imprint of his feet and pressed his lips to the rock where the seraph with six fiery wings had appeared to him.
After this pilgrimage Anthony returned to Padua. Using the liberty which had been given him by the General Chapter to go and preach where he wished, he turned towards this little city which was always so dear to his heart. Great was the joy of the people of Padua when they saw him again within their walls, and when they learned his decision to fix his abode with them. They were in ecstasies, as if a victory had been gained over an enemy; they did not, however, imagine, nor could they, the glory and the triumph which Anthony brought to them in the folds of his worn and faded cassock.
- taken from Saint Anthony, The Saint of the Whole World by Father Thomas F Ward