On
2nd May 1999
Giovanni Paolo II, in front of S. Pietro's cathedral, proclaimed saint
Father Pio from Petralcina. Father
Pio was born on 25th May 1887 in S. Giovanni Rotondo, near
Foggia in the south of Italy. During his life he met 9 Popes that
characterized his spiritual life. The
Pope that marked Father Pio's adolescence was Leone XIII, followed
Benedetto XV, Pio XI, Pio XII, Giovanni XXIII, Paolo VI, Giovanni Paolo
I and Giovanni Paolo II (Karol Wojtyla) who officially proclaimed him
Saint 1918
is a very important year in Father Pio's life, infact on 20th
September he received "THE
STIMMATE", they are wounds bleeding blood on his hands, his
feet and on his thorax. He explained this fact to his “spiritual
father”, saying that in the morning on 20th September after
having celebrated the Holy Mass, he felt ill and he realized that all
his body was blocked. In
the same time he saw a strange man with his hands, feet and his thorax
bleeding, after a while the man disappeared and Father Pio
understood that those wounds were sent to him by God.
A year later
the pilgrimage began to S. Giovanni Rotondo where the pilgrims wanted to
meet him and to receive his benediction. The
Archibishop wanted to know what happened to Father Pio and he sent some
doctors
to discovery the truth. After
a few days the doctors examined Father Pio, at the and they said those
wounds on Father Pio’s body were from “DIVINE ORIGIN”. In
1959 he fell ill and the night between 22 September 1968 the Saint of
Petralcina died. In
that occasion there was the greatest miracle of his life, misteriously
the stimmate disappeared. This
signed the end of his earthly mission entrusted him by heaven!
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