THE FEAST OF ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA TUESDAY, JUNE 13, 2006 With a warm sun in a blue, cloudless sky as the setting, the annual Feast of St. Anthony at St. Francis of Assisi drew record crowds of faithful followers on Tuesday, June 13, 2006. The day started off with a new innovation – a blessing of the guests on the Breadline. At 7:00 AM, Fr. Jerome Massimino, O.F.M., Pastor, joined by several friars, read a short prayer and then walked the length of the line to sprinkle the guests with holy water. Afterwards, each guest was handed a small bag containing a prayer card and medal of St. Anthony as well as a piece of blessed St. Anthony’s Bread. The Masses and devotions which are a typical part of the feast day were all well-attended to the point where many of them were standing-room only. In addition to the regular schedule of nine daily Masses, additional Masses were celebrated in Italian, Spanish, French, English and Korean. Fr. Tom Walters, O.F.M. coordinated the distribution of St. Anthony’s Bread under a large tent in the 32nd Street Courtyard. Boxes of bread, stacked up eight feet high, awaited the thousands who passed through. “The folks were hungry,” Fr. Tom commented after giving away some 80,000 loaves. Throughout the day he was assisted by dozens of lay volunteers who annually take a day off from work in order to be part of the experience. The pleasant weather added to the daylong festive atmosphere as crowds milled about in the prayer garden to light candles, go to confession, or simply to stop for a chat with a friar on 31st Street. |
