| St Anthony the Great
I always believe that the saints’ endeavour to befriend us. Yesterday someone asked me to visit his construction site to pray for blessings. A man in his late fifties from a middle-eastern background ran to me to greet a Coptic Priest, and to tell me a miracle that happened to him by St Anthony. A couple of years ago he was working on a site where he fell down from the third floor to the ground. In an unconscious state, he was taken to hospital with serious head injuries amongst other injuries to his body. Doctors told his wife that he may not live, and if he did happen to survive, he would likely be disabled due to the many injuries to his body. At night on the day of the accident, he saw a man full of holiness and reverence entering his room saying to him “many people are praying for you and lighting candles, so Lord Jesus has sent me to heal you. Stand up and walk”. Obeying the saint, the man start to move trying to get off his bed. Nurses tried to stop him but when the specialist arrived and found him conscious and able to move his hands, he instructed all tubes to be removed. At the astonishment of all staff, the man walked to the door of the room. A few days later he was discharged and a few days following that, he went back to work because the healing of the Lord is complete. This man has a Coptic friend who showed him many pictures of the saints to help him to recognise which saint was the one who visited him in hospital. The man recognised his face, beard and clothes in a picture. The friend told him this is St Anthony. I told the man “The feast of St Anthony is in 2 days’ time, and it seems he is inviting us to celebrate his feast. You may like to visit his church in Guildford and allow me to tell your story to the congregation to celebrate together the feast of this great saint”. May the prayers of this great saint be with us. St Anthony’s feast, 30th January. – Fr Jonathan Ishak |