St. Anthony the Abbot

St. Anthony the Abbot is also known as Anthony the Great or Anthony of the Desert. There are over 340 Catholic churches named after him in the USA alone, making him the fifteenth most popular saint. St. Anthony lived in Egypt during the third and fourth centuries AD, and it is believed that he was over 100 years old when he died. He spent most of his years in the desert and is a prominent leader amongst the Desert Fathers. In the desert, he endured many temptations, and these are a frequent subject of art and literature. In stained glass, he is often depicted wrestling with demons, or he is pictured with one or more of his attributes that are a bell, a pig, a book or a tau cross. St. Anthony is invoked for protection and healing from infectious diseases especially relating to the skin. In the past, some skin diseases such as shingles were referred to as St. Anthony’s Fire. His feast day is celebrated on January 17th, and he is the patron saint of basket makers and grave diggers. If you would like to order some for your church, chapel, home or office, please contact us at www.StainedGlassInc.com and we will happily show you our range.