ST. "PADRE" PIO PIETRELCINA, PRIEST
Padre Pio was born in 1887 in
the small Italian village of Pietrelcina. He joined the Capuchin Friars at the
age of sixteen and was ordained a priest seven years later. For fifty years at
the monastery of San Giovanni Rotundo he was a much sought after spiritual
advisor, confessor, and intercessor whose life was devoted to the Eucharist and
prayer. Yet despite such notoriety, he would often say, "I only want to be a
poor friar who prays."
St. Pio of Pietrelcina
Born to a southern Italian farm family, the son of Grazio, a shepherd.
At age 15
he entered the novitiate
of the Capuchin Friars in Morcone, and joined the order
at age 19. He suffered several health problems, and at one point his family
thought he had tuberculosis. He was ordained at age 22 on 10 August 1910.
While praying before a cross on September 20, 1918, Padre Pio received the stigmata. He is the first priest ever to be so blessed. As word spread, especially after American soldiers brought home stories of Padre Pio following WWII, the priest himself became a point of pilgrimage for both the pious and the curious. He would hear confessions by the hour, reportedly able to read the consciences of those who held back. He was reportedly able to bi-locate, levitate, and heal by touch.
In 1956 he founded the House for the Relief of Suffering, a hospital that serves 60,000 a year.
Today there are over 400,000 members worldwide in prayer groups began by Padre Pio in the 1920's.
His canonization
miracle involved the cure of Matteo Pio Colella, age 7,
the son of a doctor who works in
the House for Relief of Suffering, the hospital in San Giovanni Rotondo. On the
night of June 20, 2000, Matteo was admitted to the intensive care unit of the
hospital with meningitis. By morning doctors had lost hope for him as nine of
the boy's internal organs had ceased to give signs of life. That night, during a
prayer vigil attended by Matteo's mother and some Capuchin friars of Padre Pio's
monastery, the child's condition improved suddenly. When he awoke from the coma,
Matteo said that he had seen an elderly man with a white beard and a long, brown
habit, who said to him:
"Don't worry, you will soon
be
cured." The
miracle was approved by the Congregation and
Pope John Paul II on 20 December 2001.
Adapted from the Discount
Catholic Store, Inc.
Things to Do:
St. Pio is a saint of the last century, so there are many pictures and biographies to read more about his life. Having this gift of the stigmata was very hard on his life — both physically and emotionally. Find out more about the stigmata and his other mystical gifts, such as bilocation. St. Pio also had great devotion to his guardian angel.
From the Catholic Culture library: Biography of Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, The Devil and Padre Pio, Five Maxims for Living a Devout Life and His Wounds Spoke of God's Love for All. There are many other documents in the library which may be found by searching for "pio".
Pray..............Liturgy of the Hours
Read More....Biography
Read More....A Padre Pio Celebration
