THE DESCRIPTION OF SAINT ANTHONY ZACCARIA The Patron Saint of Physicians and Eucharist Adoration Feast Day: July 5
"We manifest our love for God in our observance of His commandments and in our readiness to obey, even His smallest decree."
Anthony Mary Zaccaria, the promoter of the devotion to the Passion of Christ, the Eucharist and the renewal of the religious life among the laity, the founder of the Clerics Regular of Saint Paul (aka the Barnabites) and an early leader of the Counter Reformation, was born Antonio Maria Zaccaria, in Cremona, Duchy of Milan (present-day Italy) in 1502. After the early death of his father Lazzaro, his mother, Antonia Pescaroli Zaccaria, made him her almoner, took care of his spiritual growth, cultivating compassion and mercy for the poor.
After attending the Episcopal School annexed to the cathedral, he studied philosophy at the University of Pavia, he studied medicine at the University of Padua, and at the age of 22, he returned home to practice.
But he soon realized that his vocation was to heal souls rather than bodies. Accordingly, he began to study theology and teach catechism to the youth. He started studying for the priesthood in 1527, and ordained a priest two years later in 1529.
Having explored his calling for two years, mainly by working in hospitals and institutions for the poor, he became spiritual advisor to Countess Ludovica Torelli of Guastalla (then the tiny County of Guastalla) in 1530, and followed her to Milan. There, he became a member of the Oratory of Eternal Wisdom.
Anthony moved to Milan, where he helped in the foundation of a female congregation dedicated to the rescue of girls - the Angelic Sisters of Saint Paul. Two years later, together with two fellow priests, he founded the Clerics Regular of St. Paul, also known as the Barnabites, with the purpose of renewing the Church by frequent preaching and the worthy administration of the sacraments.
Since their headquarters were in the Church of St. Barnabas, they became popularly known as Barnabites. They preached in churches as well as in the marketplaces, and also worked for the poor and the sick. He's left only a few writings: twelve letters, six sermons, and the constitution of the Barnabites.
While on mission to Guastalla in 1539, he caught a fever. Combined with the strict penances he performed, his health worsened and he died on July 5, 1539, at the age of 36. Luca di Seriate, the suffragan bishop, who had ordained him a priest, presided over his funeral.
In attendance were the aristocrats and people of Cremona and the surrounding towns. Anthony was buried in the San Paolo Convent of the Angelics of Saint Paul, the female branch of the Barnabites, in Milan.
27 years later after his death, his body was found incorrupt, and his mortal remains are now enshrined at the Church of Saint Barnabas in Milan, Italy. On May 27, 1897, Pope Leo XIII canonized him a saint.











