Sermons for Sundays and Festivals I. General Prologue. Sundays from Septuagesima to Pentecost

St. Anthony of Padua is one of the most popular saints of Christendom, renowned for his miracles and his concern for the poor. It is less well known that he was the first great theologian and teacher of the early Franciscan Order. Commissioned by Francis himself to teach theology to the friars, he fulfilled this task by composing his Opus Evangeliorum, a set of Commentaries on the Sunday Gospels. Beginning this work while superior at Limoges, he completed it at Padua. A little later, he undertook a second set on the Festivals and other important days, such as Ash Wednesday. This work was barely half finished at his death. Both these works are now for the first time translated in their entirety into English from the Critical Edition of the Latin text published by the Centro Studi Antoniani at Padua in 1976. The present volume comprehends the General Prologue and Sundays from Septuagesima to Pentecost. The translation, introductory material and notes for this edition are by P. Spilsbury.