September 23 marks the Feast Day for the mystic, stigmatist and saint, Padre Pio of Pietrelcina. He was born on May 25, 1887, in the small Italian village of Pietrelcina, and named Francesco in honor of St. Francis of Assisi. It was clear even from early childhood that he was drawn to the priesthood, and at the age of 16, he became a Capuchin novice. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1910. On September 20, 1918, while kneeling in prayer in front of a large crucifix, Padre Pio received the stigmata (the visible marks of the crucifixion), making him the first stigmatized priest in the history of the Church. Medical examinations performed at that time could not attribute the wounds to any disease process or natural cause. While the blood from the stigmata had a sweet odor reminiscent of flowers, the wounds caused him pain and suffering throughout, which he continually offered up to God. As Padre Pio predicted 50 years earlier, the wounds healed on the day of his death.

There are many other mystical events associated with Padre Pio, including the (well documented) gift of bilocation. Padre Pio dutifully heard 10-18 hours of confession per day, and had the ability to read the hearts of the penitents who flocked to him.

Padre Pio worked exhaustingly to establish a hospital at San Giovanni Rotondo to care for the poor of southern Italy. It remains one of the most advanced and busy hospitals to this day. Spiritually, Padre Pio was particularly devoted to the Rosary and to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. He was well known for his beautiful celebrations of the Mass. During the course of the Mass, he would cry almost continuously. To an inquirer, he said,

I don’t want to shed small tears. I want to shed a flood of tears. Don’t you see the great mystery of the Mass?

Maria Winowska, who wrote the biography Le Vrai Visage du Padre Pio (”The True Face of Padre Pio”), described his Mass in this way:

The Capuchin’s face which a few moments before had seemed to me jovial and affable was literally transfigured… Fear, joy, sorrow, agony or grief… I could follow the mysterious dialogue on (his) features. Now he protests, shakes his head in denial and waits for the reply. His entire body was frozen in mute supplication… Suddenly great tears welled from his eyes, and his shoulders, shaken with sobs, seemed bowed beneath a crushing weight… One Friday I saw him panting, oppressed as a wrestler at bay trying in vain with swift tosses of the head to shake off some obstacle which prevented him from uttering the words of Consecration. It eventually resembled single combat from which he emerged victorious but broken. On other occasions after the Sanctus great drops of sweat poured from his forehead, bathing his face which was distorted with sobs. Here was truly the man of sorrow at grips with the agony… Between himself and Christ there was no distance…

This mystical Mass could last for three hours. During the time of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s, Padre Pio was granted permission to continue celebrating the Mass according to the traditional (Tridentine) liturgy.

Padre Pio died on September 23, 1968, at the age of 81. He was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2002.

Learn more about Padre Pio at PadrePio.com, PadrePio.org, PadrePio.net, EWTN and Wikipedia.

In particular, you may enjoy listening to this wonderful audio lecture series by Fr. Andrew Apostoli, who explores the extraordinary life of Padre Pio through the saint’s own writings and through the eyes of his contemporaries. The files are in RealAudio format:

1. The saints — Special friends of God
2. His Franciscan and his priestly vocation
3. The stigmata
4. Padre Pio’s sufferings
5. The later years
6. His Mass
7. My little lady
8. Spiritual son to St. Francis
9. His many struggles
10. Spiritual fatherhood
11. The gifts of the Holy Spirit
12. Padre Pio and the popes
13. Faithfulness to the Catholic Church