Padre Pio Photo Gallery Click to read caption Capuchins gather together in the monastery chapel of Our Lady of Grace in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy each year on Sept. 20 to commemorate the day that Padre Pio received the visible stigmata, Sept. 20, 1918. "What fame he (Padre Pio) had. How many followers from around the world. Why? Was it because he was a philosopher, a scholar, or because he had means at his disposal? No, it was because he said Mass humbly, heard confessions from morning until night and was a marked representative of the stigmata of our Lord. He was truly a man of prayer and suffering." -- Pope Paul VI Pope John Paul II greets some of the patients at Padre Pio's hospital, The Home for the Relief of Suffering. Lots of smiling faces in the Padre Pio Orphans' Home in Dindigul, India. They are all very devoted to their spiritual father, Padre Pio. This photo was taken on August 10, 1960, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Padre Pio's ordination to the priesthood. This photo shows Padre Pio at the monastery of Our Lady of Grace greeting 40 members of the Carabinieri (Italian State Police). He said to them on that day, "Remember that our Heavenly Mother has been entrusted to you as your Patron Saint. Be faithful to Her as you are to your institutions. God bless you and your families." "Every holy Mass, heard with devotion, produces in our souls marvelous effects, abundant spiritual and material graces which we, ourselves, do not know." -St. Pio of Pietrelcina Padre Pio became so ill during his studies for the priesthood, that he was forced to leave the seminary and move back to his hometown of Pietrelcina. He remained there for the better part of six years. During his long illness, he spent much of his time alone in prayer and silence in this small dwelling, La Torretta (the little tower). Padre Pio was praying in front of this crucifix in the monastery chapel on Friday morning, Sept. 20, 1918 when he received the stigmata. He was the first priest in the history of the Church to receive the wounds of Christ. They remained on his body until his death in 1968. Pope John Paul II visits the maternity ward of Padre Pio's hospital, The Home for the Relief of Suffering in San Giovanni Rotondo. "The most beautiful act of faith is the one made in darkness, in sacrifice, and with extreme effort. - St. Pio of Pietrelcina This photo captures a beautiful smile on Padre Pio’s face. He said, "Don’t allow any sadness to dwell in your soul, for sadness prevents the Holy Spirit from acting freely." A statue of Our Lady of Fatima is carried in procession from Padre Pio's hometown of Pietrelcina to the countryside of Piana Romana. Padre Pio traveled this same road in his youth whenever he walked to Piana Romana where his parents had a small landholding. He loved to spend time there is solitude and prayer. Padre Pio kissing a small image of Our Lady of Fatima. His love for the Blessed Mother was expressed through his constant recitation of the Rosary. He called the Rosary a "weapon against the evil in the world." He encouraged people to keep a Rosary with them at all times and to pray it daily. "The mystery of Christ's death and resurrection is the central mystery of the Catholic faith. It is the mystery to which we always have to look so that we will not forget the meaning of our life. . .In reality, our world needs saints who will witness with their lives, the mystery of Christ's resurrection. - Fr. Aldo Broccato A few days before his death, Padre Pio was presented with a bouquet of red roses. He gave one of the roses to a pilgrim who was traveling to the shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary in Pompeii. Padre Pio asked him to place the rose in front of the image of Our Lady of Pompeii. It was a last, small, visual sign of his lifelong devotion to the Blessed Mother. Practically the only time Padre Pio left his monastery was at election time when he went to vote. In this photo, Padre Pio is being escorted by the police from a voting station to a waiting car. People showered his car with flowers as it passed through the town. Hundreds would line up on the streets to wave to him as he passed by. He encouraged everyone to vote, stating that it is the duty of all Christians. "Jesus continues to love me and to draw me closer to Himself. He has forgotten my sins, and I would say that He remembers only His own mercy.... Each morning He comes into my heart and pours out all the effusions of His goodness. -St. Pio of Pietrelcina "We will use the language of the little children of God." - St. Pio of Pietrelcina Padre Pio praying under the gaze of Our Lady of Grace--the patroness of the monastery where he spent over 50 years of his religious life. He said, "In my greatest sufferings it seems to me that I no longer have a mother on this earth, but a very compassionate one in Heaven." Load More Photos Canonization Books and Audible Video Audio
