Anthony was convinced of the power of the printed word. He wrote at least 150 books. His most well-known book, The Right Way, has reached millions of people. Some people did not understand the value of Father Anthony’s initiatives. His success and his zeal threatened them. In 1849, Anthony started a new religious order called the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary. They are known as Claretians. Queen Isabella II of Spain thought highly of St. Anthony. She suggested that he was the best person to become archbishop of Santiago, Cuba. His apostolate in Cuba turned out to be an exciting seven years. He was a reformer and had enemies. He received death threats often but did not stop his wonderful work until he was recalled to Spain in 1857. During Anthony’s priesthood he was head of a seminary in Madrid. He established the school of St. Michael to foster arts and literature and even tried to start a school of agriculture. He went to Rome to help prepare for the First Vatican Council in 1869 and died in 1870. St. Anthony Mary Claret was declared a saint by Pope Pius XII in 1950.
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