Saint Pio of Pietrelcina and a Spiritual Son “After my death I will make more noise. My real mission will begin after my death.” Saint Pio of Pietrelcina From April 25 through May 5, I had the joy and honor of accompanying to the United State and interpreting for one of the last living spiritual sons of Padre Pio of Pietrellcina. Adolfo Affatato, now 82 years old, met Padre Pio when he was just sixteen years old and spent the last fifteen years of the saint’s life by his side. Padre Pio was born in 1887 to a poor family on the small town of Pietrelcina (in the region of Campania near Benevento). His baptismal name was Francesco, after St. Francis of Assisi. As a child he wanted to become a priest and friar, however, his parents lacked the money to teach him to read and write. Therefore, his father emigrated to the United States in order to earn money to send his son to seminary. There Padre Pio began to experience extraordinary graces and supernatural phenomena. However, he was frequently sick which forced him to return home. Back in Pietrelcina, he received the invisible stigmata when he was 21 years old. When his state improved, he returned to the community near Benevento. Yet, his health – in particular his lungs – remained ill. When a fellow friar suggested he go to the hill-town of San Giovanni Rotondo, where the air might do good for his health, Padre Pio knew he would remain there for the rest of his life. The year was 1916 and Padre Pio was 29 years old. Two years later, on September 20, 1918, before a crucifix above the ancient church in San Giovanni Rotondo, Padre Pio received the five wounds of Christ. Shortly before that, he had experienced “Transverberation” or the piercing of his heart. Soon, word of these miracles and his reputation as a mystic and healer spread. Countless souls who confessed to him described how Padre Pio could “read their souls” and how he knew their sins before confessing them. There are stories of bi-location where Padre Pio would appear simultaneously in two places at the same time. Friars who lived with him recount hearing strange noises at night from within his cell in which the holy friar was struck by demons who left bruises and scrapes on his body. When asked about these phenomena, Padre Pio answered that he did not understand them and that they were a mystery even to him. Given Padre Pio’s extraordinary popularity, Church authorities exercised prudence, and for a period of time he was forbidden from hearing confessions, celebrating Mass in public, and from corresponding with his spiritual sons and daughters. This caused him immense suffering. Later, the order was lifted by the pope himself. Despite the many miracles attributed to his intercession, perhaps Padre Pio’s greatest work was the construction of the hospital called, “Sollievo della Sofferenza” (Relief of Suffering) which Padre Pio had built entirely through donations. Having borne the stigmata, which caused him great physical suffering, Padre Pio always had great empathy and compassion for the sick. Padre Pio retained the stigmata for fifty years until his death on September 23, 1968, when the wounds mysteriously healed. Countless people continue to testify to this day being visited by Padre Pio in dreams or through the fragrance of roses and violets. Saint Padre Pio was canonized on June 16, 2002.
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Bret ThomanCatholic. Franciscan. Married. Father. Pilgrim guide. Writer. Translator. Pilot. Aspiring sailor. Archives
April 2024
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