Who Wants to Win a St. Anthony Statue for Valentine's Day?

Good Day all!

Natalie here...

I hope everyone is finding themselves grateful, healthy and happy!

"Some of the most famous rituals involve praying a prayer to St. Anthony every Tuesday while burning orange candles in front of his statue. Another legend promotes that the most effective way to find a life partner is by placing thirteen identical coins around the base of the statue of St. Anthony, and while praying, walking around the statue thirteen times (His Feast Day is June 13)."

Today, Tuesday Feb. 4th begins our week long contest to win a St. Anthony Statue with prayer cards, one coin and an orange candle,

just in time for Valentines day! 
yay!!!
So, what are the contest guidelines? 
They are all about shouting out links to St. Anthony's social media sites and website at much as possible.
We are trying our hardest to get the word out there and Share St. Anthony's love with the world :) 
It's a challenging task but our mission to spread love is very dear to our hearts. 
Please will you help us?

This is what I would like to see the winning participant do:

1. If you have a Facebook we would like for you to post a link to our website, maybe even recommending a St. Anthony statue as an excellent gift to give someone for Valentine's Day or just because.

www.stanthonyfinderoflove.com

Here is link to our site :)
 http://www.stanthonyfinderoflove.com

2. Share our Facebook page with your friends on Facebook encouraging them to like it :) Please include these hash tags #StAnthonyLove #love #ValentinesDay #stanthonyfinderoflove
https://www.facebook.com/stanthonyfinderoflove?ref=hl

3. Share and follow our twitter page on your Twitter account if you have one..The more followers we have to more reach :)
Include @StAnthonyLove in some of your tweets..
Tweet about love and Valentine's Day

https://twitter.com/StAnthonyLove

4.  Follow us on Pinterest :)
http://www.pinterest.com/julieorlet/

5. Interact with us :) We like hearing what you have to say...Share with us your stories of love

6. Leave a comment below so we know you are participating :)
and leave a comment on our Facebook post regarding this contest.

7.I hope YOU are the winner!

Ready, Set, go!

I've left St. Anthony finder of love cards in churches and shrines and coffee shops and restaurants all over Budapest. If you look closely, you'll see the cards at the base of the statue tucked next to the flower pot.  Spreading love.....all over Eastern Europe.

I'm in Berlin at a friend's house.  I've been traveling around Eastern Europe for the past 10 days leaving little St. Anthony cards around in Coffee Shops, restaurants, bookstores and churches along the way.  I've discovered that many churches actually have a statue or shrine to St. Anthony.  I took that as a good omen and so left cards behind on or near the shrines. If I can figure out how to add pictures to this page of the cards and statues, I'll post some. If not, I'll wait to get home and seek the help of Natalie or one of my children.

I've visited Budapest, Prague, Vienna and now Berlin.  I now am convinced that the Fairy Tales we read as children took taken place in Eastern Europe! The settings for these tales replicate the city centers, the castles, the plazas and churches that still adorn these beautiful cities. The pictures from the likes of  Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Wee Willy Winky, Simple Simon,  The Beauty and the Beast, Humpty Dumpty etc.,etc., etc., came to life as I walked through these picturesque cities and villages.  The bridges, the cobble stoned streets, the lamp posts, city walls, stone stairways, wooden and iron gates, ancient and mid evil statues.......all brought back memories of  Grimm Brother's Fairy Tales. Spectacularly beautiful yet quaint and  romantic.

Believe in the power of myth, believe in the power of prayer, believe in miracles, believe in love.- that's the message on the St. Anthony finder of love card.  I'm sure they'll fall into the right hands.  There are no accidents, there are no coincidences,....and only love is real.

Good Day!

 

I’ve always been intrigued by rituals and ceremonies. I love the mysticism of the Catholic mass, the sacredness of chanting monks in a Buddist temple, the solemnity of Hindi fire ceremonies, and the spiritual connection evident in Native American sweat lodges.  I celebrate the solstices, and the equinonx, with drummings in the woods. I smudge my home and surroundings to eliminate low energy and welcome in new.  I enjoy meditating and live gratefully with the benefits it brings to my life.  I celebrate the divine among us and in each of us.  And I believe in the power of myths and legends and the human spirit in manifesting things in our lives.

I manage the gift shop in a wonderful coffee house in my home town. When a friend of mine returned from Machu Pichu in Peru, she told me of a shrine, dedicated to St. Anthony that she had come upon at the base of the mountain.  She explained that pilgrims visiting this sacred place stopped at this shrine to ask St. Anthony to intercede for them in helping them find “true love” in their life.  She asked me to order a statue of St. Anthony for her daughter, and she added that I might want to order one for myself!

And so began the quest of researching the legend behind the man, St. Anthony of Padua.  St. Anthony, the finder.  

Throughout the centuries people have prayed to St. Anthony to help find lost objects, lost persons, lost loves.  The miraculous answers to prayers offered, merited Anthony the banner “saint of miracles” the “saint who is the finder”.

For my friend’s daughter and for myself, I had a statue of St. Anthony, finder of love sculpted, depicting 

St. Anthony holding a heart in his hands – my heart, friend’s daughters  heart, and now anyone who is searching for true love’s heart, embraced by the “saint of miracles” the “finder”.

Artists and creatives function as the mythologist of our times.   They keep alive myths and legends

through paintings, sculptures, poems, stories and songs.  By creating this statue of St. Anthony, finder of love, we hope to perpetuate the beautiful legend of St. Antony, finder of love. We hope that the “saint of miracles” will continue to change lives and his answered prayers will be celebrated for centuries to come.

Pax et bonum,

Julie