17 January, 2020
St. Antonius Feast Day Celebration
On January 17, all the teachers and students gathered at the school hall for the celebration of St. Antonius Feast Day. Through this prayer gathering, teachers encouraged students to learn from St. Antonius, emulate his virtues, restrain our desires and fight against the temptations of demons.
Saint Antonius is generally considered to be the star of the wilderness and the father of the monks. One day, when St. Antonius entered the church to hear the Gospel, in which the Lord said to the rich young man, "Do not worry about tomorrow, tomorrow will take care of itself." (Matthew 6:34) Promptly in response to God’s holy words, he gave his wealth to the poor and needy.
Afterwards, Saint Antonius went to the desert alone and gave his life to prayer and the Lord. When he was bored and lonely, an angel guided him to work hard and pray. In his solitude, he successfully overcame the temptations of the flesh and attacks of demons by the power of prayers. His reputation attracted many people to follow his holy life. Later, many people from other countries came to ask St. Antonius for help and prayer.
We hope our students can imitate the life of St. Antonius ── to always be concerned for the poor, work hard and respond to God’s holy words proactively.