The Catholic Church recognizes the Italian Franciscan priest, friar, stigmatist, and mystic St. Pio of Petrelcina (Pio da Pietrelcina), otherwise called “Padre Pio” or “Saint Pio of Pietrelcina” and prestigious for his affliction, humility, and supernatural occurrences on Feast Day of Padre Pio on September 23.
Interesting Facts about Padre Pio
- St. Padre Pio was an Italian priest who was known for his piety and charity, as well as the gift of the stigmata, which has never been clarified.
- St. Padre Pio was born Francesco Forgione, on May 25, 1887, in Pietrelcina, Italy. His parents were laborer farmers. As a child, he was extremely religious and by the age of five, he settled on the decision to devote his life to God.
- Luckily, his parents were likewise religious and they upheld his Catholic development. His family was gone to daily Mass. Francisco served as an altar boy at his local parish. Francisco was known for taking on penances and his mom once chided him for sleeping on a stone floor.
- Francisco’s community was additionally supportive. Saint’s days were popular celebrations and normally celebrated in his town.
- From his young age, Francisco had a peculiar ability. He could see guardian angels, talked with Jesus and the Virgin Mary. This was not something educated to him, however happened so naturally that he expected others could see them as well.
- Even though Francisco and his family were extremely religious, they were likewise poor, which necessitated that he works. He spent numerous years as a child keeping an eye on a little run of sheep possessed by his family. Lamentably, the work implied he couldn’t go to attend school routinely, so he immediately fell behind different children his age.
- Francisco was sickly as a kid. He endured an attack of gastroenteritis at age six and when he was ten, he had typhoid fever.
- In 1897, following three years of schooling, Francisco communicated to his parents that he wanted to become a friar. His parents traveled to a close-by community of priests and inquired as to whether Francesco could go along with them. He was evaluated, notwithstanding his young age, and was informed that he required more education before he could join.
- To prepare Francesco, his parents decided to hire a private tutor. To pay the expense of the tutor, Francesco’s dad went to America to look for some kind of work and sent the cash home.
- At 15 years old, Francisco was at long last prepared and he entered the novitiate of the Capuchin friars at Morcone. He took the name of “Pio” out of appreciation for Pope Pius I, whose relic he frequently observed at his nearby church.
- At 17 years old, Brother Pio became incredibly sick and could just digest milk and cheese. He was sent to the mountain for better air, and when this didn’t work, he was sent home to his family. In the midst of this, he kept on study for the ministry.
- On one event during prayer, an individual priest incredibly announced he saw Pio levitate during an episode of ecstasy.
- Brother Pio became a priest in 1910, yet was allowed to stay at home due to his poor health.
- In 1915, with World War I distressing the world, Padre Pio was summoned for military service. He was constrained to leave a small community of priests, with whom he was then housed, and drafted into medical service. In any case, he was debilitated to the point that he was frequently sent home, just to then be reviewed for service. In March 1916, he was at long last dismissed because of his poor health.
- On September 20, Padre Pio was hearing confessions when he felt torment in his hands and feet. He saw the stigmata, the injuries of Christ, showing up on his hands and feet. The experience was painful. Bleeding happened. The injuries smelled of roses, and even though they kept on weep, they never got contaminated. Doctors who later inspected the stigmata were astonished at their entirely round shape.
- By 1919, word started to spread about Padre Pio’s stigmata and individuals originated from far away to analyze him.
- Padre Pio became popular with the individuals he experienced and soon started to credit otherworldly events to him. For instance, he was said to levitate, and ready to perform wonders.
- His fame became a source of worry for the Church and the Vatican started to confine his activities to limit public communication. Padre Pio himself was awkward with his freshly discovered fame and the consideration he got on account of his stigmata. A Church examination concerning his stigmata reasoned that his condition was not faked.
- By 1934, the Vatican started to change its attitude towards Padre Pio and he was again permitted to perform public obligations. He could preach, regardless of never being authoritatively licensed by the Church to do as such. Pope Pius XI urged individuals to visit him.
- In 1947, Fr. Karol Wojtyla visited Padre Pio who prophetically disclosed to him he would ascend to the highest post in the Church.” Fr. Karol Wojtyla became Pope John Paul II in 1978.
- Padre Pio used his recently discovered notoriety to open a hospital in San Giovanni Rotondo. The office opened in 1956.
- Pope Paul VI inspected the debates encompassing Padre Pio and dismissed any worries over his conduct and the credibility of his stigmata.
- Padre Pio became globally famous. He was known for his piety, charity, and the quality of his proclaiming. He broadly exhorted, “Pray, hope, and don’t worry.”
- He had different sicknesses, too, including cancer which was inexplicably recuperated after only two therapies. Different issues, for example, arthritis, which tormented him in his later years, never disappeared.
- Padre Pio passed on September 23, 1968. His funeral was attended by more than 100,000 individuals.
- Pope John Paul II perceived Padre Pio as a saint on June 16, 2002. His feast day is September 23. He is the patron of civil defense volunteers, teenagers, and the town of Pietrelcina.
