New Website Added to List - Official Website of St. Padre Pio

Padre Pio statue - Blessed Sacrament Church, Paterson, NJ

The Official Website of Saint Padre Pio

St. Padre Pio feast Sept. 23 - novena & litany

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Mahalo Mary Jane for sharing!

Sept. 23 - feast of St. Padre Pio

start novena either on Sept. 14 or 15

 

Dear God, Thou hast generously blessed Thy servant, St. Pio of Pietrelcina, with the gifts of the Spirit. Thou hast marked his body with the five wounds of Christ Crucified, as a powerful witness to the saving Passion and Death of Thy Son. Endowed with the gift of discernment, St. Pio labored endlessly in the confessional for the salvation of souls. With reverence and intense devotion in the celebration of Mass, he invited countless men and women to a greater union with Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

Through the intercession of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, I confidently beseech Thee to grant me the grace of (mention your intentions here).Amen.

Recite three Glorias.

 

Litany of St. Padre Pio

 

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven,
have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the World,
have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit,
have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God,
have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, Virgin Immaculate, pray for us.
St. Pio of Pietrelcina, pray for us.
Beloved of God, pray for us.
Imitator of Jesus Christ, pray for us.
Good shepherd of the people, pray for us.
Model for priests, pray for us.
Light of the Church, pray for us.
Adorer of the Blessed Sacrament, pray for us.
Faithful son of St. Francis, pray for us.
Marked with the stigmata of Jesus, pray for us.
Patient in suffering, pray for us.
Helper of the dying, pray for us.
Director of souls, pray for us.
Heart of gold, pray for us.
Apostle of mercy, pray for us.
Worker of miracles, pray for us.
Consoler of the afflicted, pray for us.
Lover of the Most Holy Rosary, pray for us.
Helper of souls in doubt and darkness, pray for us.
Comforter of the sick, pray for us.
Example of humility, pray for us.
Source of wisdom, pray for us.
Mirror of the divine life, pray for us.
Lover of Jesus Crucified,
Resigned to the will of God, pray for us.
Doing good upon earth, pray for us.
Filled with the spirit of self-sacrifice, pray for us.
Our help and hope in all our needs, pray for us.
Vessel of the Holy Spirit, pray for us.
Leading us to Christ, pray for us.
Our spiritual father and advocate, pray for us.
Crowned with glory in Heaven, pray for us.


God our Father,  You helped St. Pio to reflect the
image of Christ through a life of charity and self-sacrifice.
May we follow your Son by walking in the footsteps of
St. Pio of Pietrelcina and by imitating his selfless love.
Amen

Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina - "The Mass of Padre Pio: What a Mass!" and Padre Pio Maxims

As we celebrate the feast of beloved St. Padre Pio, I share with you the following description of Padre Pio celebrating Holy Mass as well as other excerpts from an old book, Padre Pio the Stigmatist.

"No, we cannot describe it. Only an angel could. We poor human creatures with great difficulty and fragmentarily can give some impression of the effect. The supernatural with its ineffable sweetness is not attainable through any sufficiency of our own. As a seminarian at the American College of Louvain, Belgium, I found the mass of the famous Cardinal Mercier, of the First World War, used to thrill me, but the mass of Padre Pio turned me into a dumbfounded St. Peter watching Christ resurrect the dead Lazarus.

At the moment that Pio makes the sign of the Cross at the foot of the altar of St. Francis of Assisi, his face is transfigured. He is no longer the simple smiling priest who celebrates the divine sacrifice, but he is the man of God, chosen to give testimony of His existence, chosen to collaborate with Jesus in the continued martyrdom of the five wounds of the Passion the priest who with Jesus is crucified and, let us dare say, dies mystically in each mass with Him..."

"Christ is Padre Pio, and Padre Pio is Christ an alter Christus...And yet how few of our priests and bishops take time out to travel to this theater of our century's greatest drama..."

"How shall we explain otherwise the suffering that is reflected on the face of this Alter Christus, the anguished contractions of his body, the strained effort to raise himself up, leaning his bleeding hands on the altar after genuflections, as if on his back there were really the weight of Christ's cross? And the prolonged ecstasies like Christ transfigured on Mount Thabor, and that ravishment that takes him out of this world of materialistic chaos. And the motions of his head, the signs of smiles of consent which make him glow as his petitions for his spiritual children around his feet make his Christ smile in approval. And suddenly, then the twist of his face, the burst of tears--and, oh, what tears that bathe the sleeves of his alb as he struggles with frequency to retrain himself? Would you not then, love to rush up with tears coursing your cheeks and give him the fraternal filial embrace of a St. John with his Divine Friend? Having seen Padre Pio seven times in this state, I can truthfully say I have the privilege of seeing my Christ crucified.

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Spiritual Maxims of Padre Pio

- Through the study of books one seeks God; by meditation one finds Him.

- The life of a Christian is nothing but a perpetual struggle against self; there is no flowering of the soul to the beauty of its perfection except at the price of pain.

- Speaking of temptations he said: "If you succeed in overcoming temptation, this has the effect of washing on dirty clothes."

- Whoever does not meditate, is like someone who never looks in the mirror before going out, doesn't bother to see if he's tidy, and may go out dirty without knowing it.

- The person who meditates and turns his mind to God, who is the mirror of his soul, seeks to know his faults, tries to correct them, moderates his impulses, and puts his conscience in order.

- If we are calm and persevering, we shall find not only ourselves, but our souls, and with that, God Himself.

- On Mortifications: Our body is like an ass which we must beat, but not too much because otherwise it will fall down and it won't carry us any more.

- The demon has only one door by which to enter into our soul: the will; there are no secret doors. No sin is a sin if not committed with the will. When there is no action of the will, there is no sin, but only human weakness.

- On being excessively distressed by one's sins: That which you feel is pride; it is the demon which inspires you with this sentiment, it is not true sorrow."

- On distinguishing what comes from God and what comes from the devil: The spirit of God is a spirit of peace, and also in the case of grave sin, it makes us feel a tranquil sorrow humble, confident, and this is due precisely to His mercy. The spirit of the demon, on the contrary, excites, exasperates, and makes us in our sorrow feel something like anger against ourselves, whereas our first charity must be to ourselves, and so if certain thoughts agitate you, this agitation never comes from God, w ho gives you tranquility, being the Spirit of Peace. Such agitation comes from the devil.

- On our responsibility for the salvation of someone's soul: Try with love, lots of love, spending all you have, and if that is useless...rebuke him. Christ who is our model has taught us so, since He created Paradise and also Hell.

- A good scolding or slap given dutifully is sometimes more in order than a kindly reminder. On several occasions the Father said to his spiritual children at San Giolvanni Rotondo: "Beatings and bread make beautiful boys."

- Before sanctifying others, sanctify yourself.

- All human ideas, no matter from where they come, have their good and bad points; one must assimilate all the good in them and offer them to God, and eliminate the bad.

- All prayers are good, when these are accompanied by the right intention and good will.

- Prayer should be insistent when insistence denotes faith.

- Man is so full of pride that when he has everything he needs and good health, he believes himself a god, and superior to God himself, but when something happens and he can do nothing, and others can't do anything about it either, only then he will remember that there is a Supreme Being.

- God enriches the soul which empties itself of everything.

- In the spiritual life one must always go on pushing ahead and never go backwards; if not, the same thing happens as to a boat which when it loses headway gets blown backwards with the wind.

- It is not a loss of patience if one ask Jesus to take away pain, when this becomes insupportable to us and beyond our strength, nor does one lose the merit of the suffering which is offered, by asking this of God.

- Beneficence, from wherever it may come, is always the child of teh same mother, that is Providence.

- The lie is the child of the demon.

- The habit of asking 'Why" has ruined the world.

- Humility is truth, truth is humility.

- Remember always that God sees everything.

- Prayer is the best armor we have, it is the key which opens the heart of God.

- Remember that the axis of perfection is charity; who lives centered in charity, lives in God, because God is charity, as the Apostle said.

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- On sanctifying oneself: Separate yourself from the world.

- A mother in the beginning teaches a child to walk holding onto it, but afterwards the child has to walk alone. You must learn to use your own reasoning powers.

- Sin against charity is like piercing God in the pupil of the eye. What is more delicate than the pupil of the eye? To sin against charity is like a sin against nature.

- A good heart is always strong, it suffers, but with tears it is consoled by sacrificing itself for its neighbor and for God.

- Love and fear must go united together, fear without love becomes cowardice. Love without fear becomes presumption. When there is love without fear, love runs without prudence and without restraint, without taking care where it is going."

- Always have prudence and love, for these two must stay together. Prudence has the eyes, love the legs.

- Where there is no obedience there is no virtue, where there is no virtue there is not good, where there is no good there is no love, where there is no love, there is no God, and where there is no God there is no Paradise.

- The Cross will not crush you; if its weight makes you stagger, its power will also sustain you.

- Humility and purity are the wings which carry us to God and make us almost divine. Remember: that a bad man who is ashamed of the wrong thing he is doing, is nearer to God than a good man who bushes at doing the right thing.

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- To his spiritual son: "I have bought you with the price of my blood."

- In the spiritual life, the more you run the less you get tired; moreover, peace, the prelude to eternal joy, will come upon us, and we shall be happy and strong according to the extent that we live in t his study of making Jesus live in us, and of mortifying ourselves.

- The doors of paradise are open to every human creature, remember Mary Magdalene!

- Charity is the measure by which Our Lord judges all things.

- Time spent in honor of God and for the salvation of souls is never badly spent.

- Keep well dug into our minds thew words of Our Lord: In patience you will possess you soul.

- What does it matter to you whether Jesus wishes to guide you to heaven by way of the desert or by the fields, so long as you get there by one way or the other?

- Put away any excessive worrying which results from the trials by which the good God has desired to test you; and if this is not possible resign yourself to the Divine Will.

- It is just as well to make yourself at home with the suffering that Jesus is pleased to send you, as you must always live with them...

- The impetus to be in eternal peace is good and holy; but it must be moderated by complete resignation to the Divine Will.

= It is better to accomplish the Divine Will on earth than to rejoice in Paradise. To suffer and not die, was the motto of St. Teresa. Purgatory is sweet when one suffers for the love of God.

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- The demon is like a dog on a chain; beyond the range of the cahin it cannot bite anyone. And you, therefore, keep your distance. If you get too near it will get you.

- Temptations, discomforts, worries are merchandise offered for sale by the enemy. Remember this: if the demon makes a lot of noise, it is a sign that he is still outside, and not inside. What should frighten us is when he is at peace and in harmony with our human soul.

- Your temptations come from the devil and hell but your suffering come from God and Paradise...Despise temptations and embrace tribulations...

- Let us climb Calvary without getting tired, carrying our Cross and be certain that the climb will lead us to the beatific vision of Our dear Savior.

- If Jesus manifests Himself to you, thank Him; if He hides Himself from you, thank Him likewise...

- I hope you will persevere to death with Christ on the Cross, and that at the end you will softly exclaim with him: Consummatum est! (It is finished).

- Divine Goodness does not only not reject penitent souls, but goes out in search of obstinate souls.

- Have patience in the perseverance of the holy exercise of meditation, and be content to being by making little steps until you have legs to run with, or rather wings to fly with.

- Content yourself with just making an act of obedience with is never a thing of little importance for a souls who has chosen God for her portion, and resign yourself for the time being to be little baby bee in the hive, which soon will become a a full-grown bee, able to make honey.

- The heart of our Divine Master knows only the loving law of sweetness, humility and charity...

- Put your trust often in the Divine Providence of God, and be certain that rather will heaven and earth pass away than that our Lord should fail to protect you.

- Walk with simplicity in the way of the Lord and do not torment your spirit.

- You must hate your sins, but with a tranquil hate, not worryingly or restlessly.

- Rest like the Virgin on the Cross of Jesus and you will not be deprived of comfort...

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Excerpts from Padre Pio the Stigmatist by Father Charles Mortimer Carty

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In God's Company 2: Tribute to Saint Padre Pio

In God's Company 2: Tribute to Saint Padre Pio: 07/09/2011 16:16:15: Seeing is believing!..Padre Pio is sign for our times...This video shows footage of Saint Pio's incorrupt body...

Book reveals the keys to the trial of Padre Pio

Padre Pio's Secret: His Shoulder Wound

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Padre Pio's Secret: His Shoulder Wound by Frank M. Rega

Shortly after World War II was over, a young Polish priest who was studying in Rome, Fr. Karol Wojtyla, visited Padre Pio in San Giovanni Rotondo. This encounter took place around 1947 or 1948. At that time in post-war Italy, it was possible to have access to Padre Pio, since travel was difficult and great crowds were not besieging the Friary. The young priest spent almost a week in San Giovanni Rotondo during his visit, and was able to attend Padre Pio’s Mass and make his confession to the saint. Apparently, this was not just a casual encounter, and the two spoke together at length during Fr. Wojtyla’s stay. Their conversations gave rise to rumors in later years, after the Polish prelate had been elevated to the Papacy, that Padre Pio had told him he would become Pope. The story persists to the present day, even though on two or three occasions "Papa Wojtyla" denied it.

Recently, new information about this visit has come to light, according to a new book in Italian published by Padre Pio's Friary, Il Papa e Il Frate, written by Stefano Campanella (1). As reported in this book, the future Pope and future Saint had a very interesting conversation. During this exchange, Fr. Wojtyla asked Padre Pio which of his wounds caused the greatest suffering. From this kind of personal question, we can see that they must have already talked together for some time and had become at ease with each other. The priest expected Padre Pio to say it was his chest wound, but instead the Padre replied, "It is my shoulder wound, which no one knows about and has never been cured or treated." This is extremely significant, not only because it reveals that Padre Pio bore this wound, but because, as far as is known, the future pope is the only one to whom Padre Pio ever revealed existence of this secret wound.

Centuries earlier, Our Lord himself had revealed to St. Bernard of Clairvaux in a vision, that his shoulder wound from carrying the heavy wooden cross caused him his greatest suffering, and that the cross tore into his flesh right up to the shoulder bone.

At one time, Padre had confided to his paisano from Pietrelcina, Brother Modestino Fucci, that his greatest pains occurred when he changed his undershirt. (Brother Modestino is currently the doorkeeper at Padre Pio’s friary in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy.) Modestino, like Fr. Wojtyla, thought Padre Pio was referring to pains from the chest wound. Then, on February 4, 1971 Modestino was assigned the task of taking an inventory of all the items in the deceased Padre’s cell in the friary, and also his belongings in the archives. That day he discovered that one of Padre Pio’s undershirts bore a circle of bloodstains in the area of the right shoulder.

This reminded Brother Modestino that he had once read about a devotion to the shoulder wound of Jesus, caused by his bearing of the heavy cross beam, the patibulum, to Calvary. The beam could weigh up to 100 pounds. Part of this devotion to the shoulder wound of Christ is to pray daily three Our Father’s, Hail Mary’s and Glory Be’s, to honor the severe pains and lacerations Our Lord suffered from the weight of the patibulum.

On that very evening of February 4, 1971, Brother Modestino asked Padre Pio in prayer to enlighten him about the meaning of the bloodstained undershirt. He asked Padre to give him a sign if he truly bore Christ’s shoulder wound. Then he went to sleep, awakening at 1:00 AM with a terrible, excruciating pain in his shoulder, as if he had been sliced with a knife up to the shoulder bone. He felt that he would die from the pain if it continued, but it lasted only a short time. Then the room became filled with the aroma of a heavenly perfume of flowers – the sign of Padre Pio’s spiritual presence – and he heard a voice saying "Cosi ho sofferto io!" – "This is what I had to suffer!" Modestino remarked that he had a strange sensation after the pain subsided: that being deprived of this pain was also a suffering. His body had suffered from it, but his soul had desired it. He said, "It was painful and sweet at the same time."

What is the mystical and spiritual significance of the shoulder wound of St. Padre Pio? The book by journalist Saverio Gaeta, Sulla Soglia del Paradiso (2), reports that Padre Pio said this of his spiritual children: "When the Lord entrusts a soul to me, I place it on my shoulder and never let it go." From this statement, it can reasonably be inferred that the saint offered up the suffering and the extreme pain of his shoulder wound for his spiritual children.

Cleonice Morcaldi once said in the presence of Gaeta, "On the shoulders of Padre Pio rests the whole world and the Church." This expression seemed an exaggeration to the writer. But on the very same day that Gaeta had heard this, he later joined Padre Pio and some others in conversation. Padre Pio was telling the story of St. Christopher, and how he had carried the child Jesus on his shoulders across a river. Then, turning his gaze to look directly at Saverio Gaeta, Padre Pio pointedly said to the writer, "On my shoulders is the whole world."

References:

1. Campanella, Stefano, Il Papa e Il Frate, San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, Edizioni Padre Pio da Pietrelcina, 2005.

2. Gaeta, Saverio, Sulla Soglia del Paradiso, Edizione speciale per Famiglia Christiana, San Paolo Edizioni, 2002.

Based on the author’s earlier article in the December 2007 Newsletter of the Padre Pio Foundation, Cromwell, CT., USA Padre Pio

Padre Pio's Christmas Meditation

Far into the night, at the coldest time of the year, in a chilly grotto, more suitable for a flock of beasts than for humans, the promised Messiah – Jesus – the savior of mankind, comes into the world in the fullness of time.

There are none who clamor around him: only an ox and an ass lending their warmth to the newborn infant; with a humble woman, and a poor and tired man, in adoration beside him.

Nothing can be heard except the sobs and whimpers of the infant God. And by means of his crying and weeping he offers to the Divine justice the first ransom for our redemption.

He had been expected for forty centuries; with longing sighs the ancient Fathers had implored his arrival. The sacred scriptures clearly prophesy the time and the place of his birth, and yet the world is silent and no one seems aware of the great event. Only some shepherds, who had been busy watching over their sheep in the meadows, come to visit him. Heavenly visitors had alerted them to the wondrous event, inviting them to approach his cave.

You can read the rest here.

Rare Footage of Padre Pio

H/T to Father Tim Finegan via Sue Cifelli.

Saint Padre Pio - On Sin

Someone complained to Padre Pio of being excessively distressed by the sins he had committed. Padre Pio replied to him:

“That which you feel is pride; it is the demon which inspires you with this sentiment, it is not true sorrow.”

The penitent replied: “Father, how can you then distinguish what comes from the heart and is inspired by Our Lord, and that which instead is inspired by the devil?” “You will distinguish it,” replied the holy priest, “always by this: The spirit of God is a spirit of peace, and also in the case of grave sin, it makes us feel a tranquil sorrow, humble, confident, and this is due precisely to His mercy.

The spirit of the demon, on the contrary, excites, exasperates, and makes us in our sorrow feel something like anger against ourselves, whereas our first charity must be to ourselves, and so if certain thoughts agitate you, this agitation never comes from God, who gives you tranquility, being the Spirit of Peace. Such agitation comes from the devil.”

You can read more about a day in the life of Padre Pio at A Christian Pilgrimage

Thanks to Sue Cifelli for sharing.

Saint Padre Pio of Pietrelcina

"Joy, with peace, is the sister of charity. Serve the Lord with laughter. " 

- Padre Pio

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"...Nothing can be heard except the sobs and whimpers of the infant God. And by means of his crying and weeping he offers to the Divine justice the first ransom for our redemption..."

Padre Pio's Christmas meditation

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Padre Pio received the Stigmata in 1918 while praying before a cruficix.   One of his spiritual daughters asked Padre Pio a series of questions such as the following one regarding the Cross of Christ:

Q..."Father, how do you remain upright at the altar?"

R..."The way Jesus used to hold himself on the Cross."

Q..."Do you mean that you are at the altar hanging from the Cross, the way Jesus did at Calvary?"

R..."And you ask me?"

Q..."How can you keep yourself upright?"

R..."The way Jesus kept Himself upright at Calvary..."

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"A Mass! Ask an angel" — states Padre Pio — "what a Mass is and he will answer: I understand what it is and why it is celebrated, but I cannot understand all the value it has. One angel, one thousand angels, all of Paradise thinks the same. And you, you who receive the benefits from it, you do not want to meditate on it"?

..."When you go to Mass", continues Padre Pio, "concentrate to the maximum on the great mystery being celebrated in your presence: "The redemption of your soul and the reconciliation with God."

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"Jesus likes to give Himself to simple souls; we must make an effort to acquire this beautiful virtue of simplicity and to hold it in great esteem. Jesus said: Unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. But before He taught us this by His words he had already put it into practice. He became a child and gave us the example of that simplicity he was to teach us later also by his words. Let us empty our hearts and keep far from us all human prudence. We must try to keep our thoughts pure, our ideas upright and honest and our intentions holy." ... From a letter to Padre Agostino from Pietrelcina,

Source

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Padre Pio foretold his death nine years before he died. He told Pietruccio, his blind friend, that he would die in his eighty-second year. When he died, he was three months into his eighty-second year.

In 1959, when the new church at San Giovanni Rotondo was dedicated, a lady from Naples approached Padre Pio, very distressed. She felt certain that the blessing of the new church was an omen of his death. "No," he reassured her, "I’ll die when they bless the crypt."

The crypt to which he referred was a room which had been excavated beneath the sanctuary of the church to serve as Padre Pio’s tomb.

One day, Padre Romolo sprang a question on Padre Pio: "Are you afraid of death?" Padre Pio reflected for a moment. Then he said, almost flippantly: "No." He had been praying for his death all his life...

Read the rest here

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The Great Promise of St. Padre Pio

-- "I have made a pact with the Lord: when my soul has been purified in the flames of purgatory and deemed worthy to be admitted to the presence of God, I will take my place at the gate to paradise, but I shall not enter until I have seen the last of my spiritual children enter." ... from a letter to spiritual daughter Antonietta Pompilio

Taken from the book "The Life of Padre Pio: Between the Altar and the Confessional" by Gennaro Preziuso, St. Pauls, 2000. pp. 150-1, 197 --

The only saint known to have made such a promise
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To become a spiritual child of Padre Pio, please visit The National Center for Padre Pio

Novena to St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio) Feast is Sept. 23

St. Padre Pio statue Blessed Sacrament Church, Paterson, NJ
Shared by Mary Jane.

Say once a day for nine days (start Tuesday, Sept. 14 to finish on Sept. 22)

Dear God, Thou hast generously blessed Thy servant, St. Pio of Pietrelcina, with the gifts of the Spirit. Thou hast marked his body with the five wounds of Christ Crucified, as a powerful witness to the saving Passion and Death of Thy Son. Endowed with the gift of discernment, St. Pio labored endlessly in the confessional for the salvation of souls. With reverence and intense devotion in the celebration of Mass, he invited countless men and women to a greater union with Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

Through the intercession of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, I confidently beseech Thee to grant me the grace of (mention your intentions here). Amen.

Recite three Glorias.

Litany of St. Padre Pio

Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven,
have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the World,
have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit,
have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God,
have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, Virgin Immaculate, pray for us.
St. Pio of Pietrelcina, pray for us.
Beloved of God, pray for us.
Imitator of Jesus Christ, pray for us.
Good shepherd of the people, pray for us.
Model for priests, pray for us.
Light of the Church, pray for us.
Adorer of the Blessed Sacrament, pray for us.
Faithful son of St. Francis, pray for us.
Marked with the stigmata of Jesus, pray for us.
Patient in suffering, pray for us.
Helper of the dying, pray for us.
Director of souls, pray for us.
Heart of gold, pray for us.
Apostle of mercy, pray for us.
Worker of miracles, pray for us.
Consoler of the afflicted, pray for us.
Lover of the Most Holy Rosary, pray for us.
Helper of souls in doubt and darkness, pray for us.
Comforter of the sick, pray for us.
Example of humility, pray for us.
Source of wisdom, pray for us.
Mirror of the divine life, pray for us.
Lover of Jesus Crucified,
Resigned to the will of God, pray for us.
Doing good upon earth, pray for us.
Filled with the spirit of self-sacrifice, pray for us.
Our help and hope in all our needs, pray for us.
Vessel of the Holy Spirit, pray for us.
Leading us to Christ, pray for us.
Our spiritual father and advocate, pray for us.
Crowned with glory in Heaven, pray for us.


God our Father, You helped St. Pio to reflect the
image of Christ through a life of charity and self-sacrifice.
May we follow your Son by walking in the footsteps of
St. Pio of Pietrelcina and by imitating his selfless love.
Amen

Padre Pio: Confessions

State of St. Padre Pio, Blessed Sacrament Church, Paterson,  NJ


The following is just one story of people who confessed to Padre Pio. This one is on divorce:

In the united and holy family, Padre Pio saw the place where the faith can grow and develop. He said: “Divorce is the passport to hell".

A young lady finished the confession of her sins. She received her penance from Padre Pio who said: "You have to immerse yourself in the silence of prayer and you will save your marriage."

The lady was amazed since her marriage didn't have any problems. After a long time, her marriage began to experience trouble. However she was ready to face the problems and overcame them and so avoided the destruction of the family because she had been following the suggestion that Padre Pio gave her.

You can read them all at Why Become a Catholic?

100th Year Anniversary of Saint Padre Pio's Ordination to the Priesthood

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Archbishop Andrea Mugione of Benevento in Italy celebrated Mass Tuesday to mark the 100th anniversary of St. Pio de Pietrelcina's ordination to the priesthood. The prelate noted that Padre Pio's example of complete surrender to the Church of Christ and in service to others should encourage Catholics to “unconditionally respond to the will of God.”

Speaking to Vatican Radio, the archbishop recalled that the anniversary is “truly a special moment of prayer, grace and reflection.”

After recalling that Padre Pio felt he had a special vocation to “be a sacrificial victim of expiation for the sins of the world and for the conversion of all humanity,” the archbishop said the Italian saint was granted permission to be ordained at the age of 23 because of the various illnesses that afflicted him.

Archbishop Mugione said Padre Pio practically “lived eternity” while on earth and learned to live out the Gospel in a life that was transformed in Christ and by Christ.

EWTN News

Padre Pio’s healing power felt by Catholic Woman in Utah

Read it here

Padre Pio Celebrating Mass

Source: Cantebury Tales

BTW, if you want to watch a good movie on Saint Padre Pio, I highly recommend Michele Placido in Padre Pio: Between Heaven and Earth. We bought our copy from the wonderful Daughters of St. Paul

Padre Pio and the Guardian Angels

Padre Pio and the Guardian Angel by Guido Reni

The Guardian Angel

- An Italian-American, who lived in California, sometimes entrusted his Guardian Angel to report some messages to Padre Pio. Once, after the confession, he asked Padre Pio “if he really had received his messages from his Guardian Angel?” Father Pio asked him: “What do you think? Do you think I am hard of hearing?” After that Padre Pio repeated the messages that were sent him some days before by his Guardian Angel.

- A Father Lino said: “I was begging my Guardian Angel to bring padre Pio a request of prayer for a lady who was very sick, but it seemed that nothing changed. When I met Padre Pio I told him: “Father, I begged my Guardian Angel in order to bring you a request of prayer for a woman who is very sick...is it possible he didn’t do it? And Padre Pio answered: “Do you believe your Guardian Angel to be disobedient as you and me?

- A Father Eusebio said: I was going to London by plane, against Padre Pio’s suggestion not to use this mean of transport. When we were flying over the Channel, a violent storm put the aeroplane in danger. Amid the general terror I prayed and, without knowing what to do, I sent my Guardian Angel to Padre Pio. When I went back to St. Giovanni Rotondo I met Padre Pio who said to me, “Are you well? Is everything OK?” I answered; “I thought I’d die,” the saintly padre responded, “then why don't you obey? I responded “But I have sent you my Guardian Angel... Padre Pio then said, “Fortunately he arrived just in time!“.

- An Italian lawyer was driving coming back home from Bologna. In his FIAT 1100 were also his wife and their two children. At one point, he wanted to be replaced in driving the car because he was very tired. He asked his son Guido to drive instead of him but he didn’t answer because his son was sleeping. Some kilometres later, next to the gate of St. Lazzaro, the lawyer fell asleep too. When he woke-up he realised he was not far from Eternity. That meant that while he was sleeping he had run on the railway for several kilometres. He was very frightened so he cried: “who was guiding the car? And what has happened?” but nobody could answer him. His son, who was on his right side, woke up and told him he had slept deeply. His wife and the smaller child were incredulous and marvelled. They said he had driven differently than usual. They said, “At one time the car was going to crash into another car but at the last moment it avoided the crash with a perfect manoeuvres. The way it took the curves was also different. But above all - his wife said: “you have been immovable for a lot of time and you have not answered our questions.” The lawyer said, “I could not answer because I was asleep. I have slept for fifteen kilometres. I haven’t felt anything because I slept...but who was driving the car? Who has prevented the catastrophe? After a couple of months the mystery was disclosed, the lawyer went to St. Giovanni Rotondo. As soon as Padre Pio saw him, he said him, “You slept and the Guardian Angel drove your car.”

- One of Padre Pio’s spiritual daughters was walking along a country road to the Convent. There Padre Pio was waiting for her. It was one of those winter days, bleached by the snow in which it was even difficult to walk. The road was so full of snow that the woman had the certainty she would not reach the Convent in time for the appointment with the director. Full of faith, she charged his Guardian Angel to tell Padre Pio she would have arrived at the convent late because of the snow. When she reached the convent she saw with enormous joy that the monk was waiting for her behind a window. He greeted her smiling.

- A man told: “Padre Pio often, stopped in the sacristy greeting his spiritual children and friends by kissing them. I looked with holy envy on those so fortunate and I thought: “Blessed him! If I were him! Blessed! Blessed him! On Christmas 1958, I knelt, in front of Padre Pio for confession. Afterwards, I looked at him and while full of emotion I asked him: “Father, today is the Christmas day, can I wish you Merry Christmas by giving you a kiss? And he, with a sweetness that I am not able to describe with the pen, smile at me and said: “Hurry up, my child, don't make me waste time“! He also embraced me. I kissed him and as a bird, joyful, I went toward the exit full of celestial delights. And what can I say about some slaps on the head? Every time, before leaving from St. Giovanni Rotondo, I desired father Pio gave me a sign of particular predilection. In fact I also wanted two small slaps on the head as two fatherly caresses. I have to underline that he never refused me anything I wanted to receive from him. One day, there were a lot of people in the sacristy of the small church and father Vincenzo exhorted, with his usual severity: “don’t push, don’t shake Padre Pio’s hands go back“! I sadly thought: “This time I will leave without having the blows on the head.” I didn’t want to resign me and I begged my Guardian Angel to become a messenger and to repeat these words to Padre Pio: “Father I desire the benediction and the two blows on the head, as usual, one for me and the other for my wife”. Padre Vincenzo was still repeating “don’t push Padre Pio...stay far from him!” when Padre Pio started walking. I was in anxiety. I looked at him but I was sad. Suddenly Padre Pio came to me, he smiled and he gave me two taps and it made me also kiss his hand, “I would like to give you a lot of slaps...a lot of slaps, “ he told me the first time that I asked him for the small slaps.

- A woman was sitting in the square of the church of the capuchins. The Church was closed. It was Late and she prayed with the thought, and she repeated with the heart: “Padre Pio, help me! Guardian Angel, please, go to tell father Pio to help me, otherwise my sister will die“! From the window above her Padre Pio’s voice came: “Who is calling me at this time? What is the problem? The woman told about her sister’s illness. Padre Pio went in bilocation, to the sick woman and healed her.

- A guy told Father Pio: I cannot come and see you very often. My salary doesn’t allow me such expensive trips. Father Pio answered: “Who has told you to come here? You have your Guardian Angel, don’t you? You tell him what you want, you send him here, and you will have the answer.”

- When father Pio was a young priest he wrote a letter to his confessor in which he said: “when I close my eyes and the night comes, I can see the Heaven that appears in front of me. I am encouraged by this vision so I can sleep with a sweet smile on the lips and with a perfect calm on the forehead waiting my small companion of my infancy came to wake up me and start praying together prayers to the beloved of our hearts.”

- One day Padre Alessio approached Padre Pio with some letters in his hand in order to ask him something but Padre Pio told him abruptly, “Don’t you see that I am busy? Leave me alone.” Padre Alessio went away mortified. Padre Pio later called him and told him, “Have you seen all those angels that were near me? They were the Guardian Angels of my spiritual children that came to bring me their messages. I had to report to them the answers they needed.”

- A doctor asked Padre Pio, “So many angels are always near you. Do they bother you?” “No, they don’t,” he answered simply, “They are very obedient.”

- Father Pio said to a person: "We will pray for your mother, so that the Guardian Angel will be with her in company."

- One of the spiritual children of Padre Pio said: “ It seems that Padre Pio always listens to everybody who calls him.” One evening, a group of friends arrived to St. Giovanni Rotondo. They summarized the graces that they would have asked of Padre Pio, and they asked their Guardian Angels to bring their request to Padre Pio as soon as possible. The next day, after the Holy Mass, Padre Pio reproached them: “You do not leave me in peace even at night!” Watching Padre Pio’s smile they understood their prayer had been accepted.

- A person asked Padre Pio, “Father, are you able to hear what the Guardian Angels tell you?” And Padre Pio answered: “Of course! Do you think Angels are disobedient as you? Send me your Guardian Angel!”

- Don’t write to me because I cannot answer you. Send me your Guardian Angel and I will do everything.

- Your Guardian Angel has reported to me some sentences that have made me understand your mistrust.

- Invoke your Guardian Angel that he will illuminate you and will guide you. God has given him to you for this reason. Therefore use him!

- If the mission of our Guardian Angel is a great mission, the mission of mine is for sure greater than the others, because he has to be a teacher and explain to me other languages.

- Send me your Guardian Angel - he doesn’t have to pay a ticket for the train and he doesn’t wear out his shoes.

- For people that live alone there is the Guardian Angel.

Source Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

Thanks to Sue

In Spanish - Padre Pío de Pietrelcina

More on Becoming a Spiritual Child of St. Padre Pio

If you remember I recently shared about becoming a spiritual child of St. Padre Pio here.

There is another way you can apply to become his spiritual child:

How to become Padre Pio's spiritual child

Padre Pio, during his lifetime, accepted many people as his spiritual children. When assured of their goodwill, he always told them: "I accept you, but don't make me lose face." Today many of his devotees still want to become his spiritual children. What are they to do?

They must comply with the following conditions:
1. Live intensely a life of divine grace
2. Prove their faith by words and actions
3. Desire to remain under the protection of the Servant of God, Padre Pio
4. Imitate the venerable Padre in his love for Jesus Crucified, for the Most Blessed Sacrament, for our Lady, the Pope and the entire Church
5. Practice sincere charity towards all

Application should be made in writing.
Postulation for Padre Pio's Cause
Our Lady of Grace Capuchin Friary
71013 San Giovanni Rotondo, FG, ITALY
Voice Office: (0882) 417294
English Office: (0882) 417214 - Fax: (0882) 417241
Friary: (0882) 4171 - Fax: (0882) 417252

Perpetual Mass remembrance
A Mass is offered daily for all enrolled, both living and dead. The usual offering is $6. Enrollment may be made individually or by family.

Please visit St. Monica's Kneeler for more information.

H/T Sue

Our Lady in Padre Pio's Life

Picture source here.

Mahalo to Fr. Vince Inghilterra for sharing the article below.

Our Lady in Padre Pio's Life
Bro. Francis Mary F.I.

Every canonized Saint bears witness to an important fact: holiness is intimately connected with devotion to Mary, the Spouse of the Holy Ghost who is the Sanctifier. How could it be otherwise considering all graces come to us through the Mother of God and the Mother of the Church. According to St. Louis Mary De Montfort in his classic Marian work, True Devotion to Mary, assaults by Satan will be most fierce and intense in the latter times.

In speaking of the great saints and apostles of the latter times who will eventually triumph over Satan and his followers he gives what seems to be a pen sketch of Padre Pio, "They shall be true disciples of Jesus Christ, walking in the footsteps of His poverty, humility, and contempt of the world. . . . They shall carry on their shoulders the bloody standard of the cross, the crucifix in their right hand and the rosary in their left and the sacred names of Jesus and Mary in their hearts . . . " (these were the last words on the lips of the dying Padre Pio).

Padre Pio’s Marian devotion was a profound part of him from infancy to old age. He related later in life how as a boy he went to the shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary in Pompeii, near Naples, without permission, knowing that his mother would not give him the permission. He visited her shrine frequently when he was stationed in Naples as a soldier. Nothing could stand in his way when inspired to give Mary his love. The particular area of Italy where Padre Pio was born, Pietrelcina, had as a special patroness, Our Lady of Liberty. However, his devotion to her was expressed more in action than in words.

Though he wrote a brief meditation on her Immaculate Conception, and there are scattered references to her in his early letters (later on he was forbidden to write letters by the Holy See and as a result his written testimonies on Mary are few), yet, throughout his priestly life the most beautiful and effective "sermon" in her honor, was the Rosary which he prayed constantly. It was this chain of hope that linked him with heaven and the supernatural, that world which is unexplainable to the rationalist, and materialist.

Similar to another great Franciscan Marian Saint of our times, St. Maximilian Kolbe, Our Lady appeared to Padre Pio as well. Upon being asked twenty years later why he had kept this and other supernatural visits a secret he replied in all sincerity that he thought everyone saw our Lady. His spiritual director, Padre Agostino of San Marco, relates: "One day he ingenuously asked me ‘Don’t you see our Lady?’ At my negative reply he answered, ‘You are just saying that out of holy humility!’..." read the rest here.


- Brother Francis Mary is a member of the Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate. He is the editor of numerous books under Saints and Shrines Series published by the Academy of the Immaculate. This article was taken from the recent book he edited entitled: Padre Pio- The Wonder Worker. The above article is taken from Padre Pio- The Wonder Worker edited by Brother Francis Mary, FI and published by The Academy of the Immaculate.

Saint Padre Pio and His Devotion to the Eucharist and Mary

Statue of Padre Pio - Blessed Sacrament Church, Paterson, NJ

Padre Pio and the Eucharist

Padre Pio was truly a servant of God. He had a lifelong love affair with Our Lord Jesus in the Eucharist. To him, the Eucharist was the center of all spiritual benefits. It was the life breath of the soul. We believe the Lord gave him an insight as to the power and the magnitude of the Eucharist, from a very early age. As a young man, before he entered the priesthood, he spent hours in the church, adoring Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. After his ordination, he took a long time for the Consecration of the Mass, to the point where parishioners complained about all the time he spent, in ecstasy, before the bread and wine as they became the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus. He had to control himself, to break out of his ecstasy, and force himself back to the Mass, at the orders of his superiors...

Padre Pio and Mary

We can track Padre Pio's love and relationship with Mary, the Mother of God, back to age 5. It continued all his life. He mentioned at various times in his life that he received apparitions from Mary on a regular basis. He derived a great deal of his strength from these apparitions, especially when he suffered the onslaught of demons, and grotesque monsters, sent from hell to torture him...

You can read the rest of both parts of Bob and Penny Lord's article here

H/T to Sue