Take Heart, My Friend, and Do Not Fear

If you are fearful or suffering in any way today, my friend, take heart; even the Saints experienced some degree of fear at times, often suffered greatly, and sometimes wondered why God allowed such misery. Yes, even St. Padre Pio sometimes complained about his constant pain caused by the ever-bleeding stigmata, the five wounds of Christ Crucified in Padre Pio's hands, feet, and side. One day, according to Dorothy M. Gaudiose, (author of Prophet of the People, a biography of St. Padre Pio), one of Padre Pio's fellow friars at the San Giovanni Monastery in Italy said to him, "Look what has come for you." He handed Padre Pio a small brown box. "A present from Switzerland, Padre Pio."
St. Pio, then thirty, opened the box and smiled as he pulled out a pair of soft, cloth shoes. "This is very thoughtful," he said to the friar.
"Yes," agreed the friar. He knew that the gift would help Padre Pio's swollen, stigmatized feet to hurt less when he walked.
When St. Pio arrived in his cell (the small room assigned to him which he used as his bedroom), he put on a pair of soft brown socks and then slid the new soft shoes over them. Indeed, they would help cushion his feet which were always swollen. Often he prayed that God would take away the visible stigmata and leave St. Pio only the pain, which he gladly bore for the salvation of souls. (See Colossians 1:24 and St. Paul's agreement with this philosophy.) You see, the visible stigmata brought fame to St. Padre Pio which he hated. He wanted to remain hidden in the monastery, praying and suffering for the salvation of souls. But God's will had to be done, and so the visible stigmata remained, and the crowds increased until they reached many thousands each year. By the time St. Padre Pio died, millions of people had traveled from all over the world to see Padre Pio; to hear his Mass; to confess their sins in his confessional; to ask for him to heal them, by God's grace; to see Padre Pio's ever-bleeding stigmata; and to receive his blessing.
Now, let us return to St. Pio's cell on that day in which he received the gift of cloth shoes: According to Dorothy Gaudiose, who worked for three years in Italy for St. Pio and who told me to write my first of many published book about St. Padre Pio (all by God's grace), that day when Padre Pio exited his cell wearing his new cloth shoes, he heard "a lot of commotion. ''They are coming by the thousands,' said a friar to him in the hallway. Padre Pio nodded. 'I know.' He began to look worried. 'Do you think it will get out of control?' The brother shrugged his shoulders. 'Some say it already is. The police are outside every day now, watching the crowds. Did you know that?' Padre Pio raised his eyebrows in surprise and reluctantly ventured on." (Prophet of the People, pages 59-61)
For fifty years St. Padre Pio bore the ever-bleeding wounds of Christ. And he always told everyone who suffered, who worried about loved ones, who feared the future, who suffered misery of any type, "Pray, hope, and don't worry." My dear friend, I hope you find comfort and peace by following his advice.
May God richly bless you. Amen!

You and the Infant Jesus

Last week I shared with you some of Saint Padre Pio's quotes relating to the Infant Jesus. Knowing that with God there is no time as we know it, only eternity in which God sees all past, present, and future events, and knowing that Jesus Christ is the "same yesterday, today, and forever," according to Scripture, it is true that we can, at any time, go in prayer to the Infant Jesus just as well as to the adult Jesus--and to the Resurrected Jesus and to the Ascended Jesus and to the Jesus of eternity. So now, let us go to the Infant Jesus, through Saint Padre Pio's words, and there find consolation for our own hearts, whether they are light with joy or heavy with the miseries of this world.

If you are suffering:

"May the Infant Jesus inspire you more and more to love suffering and despise the world," says St. Padre Pio to you, my friend. "May His star enlighten your mind more and more, and may His love transform your heart and render it worthy of His divine satisfaction." (Letters, Volume 3, page 392)

If you need comforting, and if you need encouragement to go with your needs to the Infant Jesus:

"May the Infant Jesus bless you, comfort you, reward you for what you are bearing for love of Him, and make you holy!" says St. Padre Pio to you. "These and other prayers still, have been, and will be mine for you before the holy crib of the Infant Jesus. May He be pleased to grant them all! . . . Don't let temptations frighten you. They are the trials of those souls whom God wants to test when He sees them strong enough to sustain the battle weaving with their own hands the crown of glory. . . . Drive away, once and for all, every perplexity and anxiety, and enjoy in peace the most sweet pains of the Beloved." (Letters, Volume 3, pages 438-440)

If you need Christ's Holy Spirit:

"May the Infant Jesus, reborn in your heart, always reign there; may He transform your heart totally and fill it with His divine Spirit," says St. Padre Pio to you. "Be tranquil as regards your spirit and do not fear because it is Jesus who molds it; it is Jesus who reigns there." (Letters, Volume 3, page 387)

If you need God's enlightenment to chase away the darkness:

"May the Infant Jesus inspire you more and more to love suffering and despise the world," says St. Padre Pio to you, my dear friend. "May His star enlighten your mind more and more, and may His love transform your heart and render it worthy of His divine satisfaction. . . . Therefore, open wide your heart and let the Lord work freely in you. Expand your soul before the divine Sun and let the Lord work freely in you. Expand your soul before the divine Sun and let its beneficial rays dissipate the darkness which the enemy frequently thickens in it." (Letters, Volume 3, page 392)

Saint Padre Pio's blessing for you today and every day:

"May the heavenly Child always be in the midst of your heart; may He sustain it, enlighten it, vivify it, and transform it to eternal charity! . . . Remember the words the divine Master one day said to the apostles and which He says to you today: Let not your heart be troubled [John 14:1]. Yes, let not your heart be troubled in the hour of trial, because Jesus promised His real assistance to those who follow Him." (Letters, Volume 3, pages 439-441)

Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year, dear friend!

The Heavenly Child and You

As we approach the celebration of Christmas Day, Christ's birthday, I want tp share with you some of Saint Padre Pio's thoughts in relationship to the Christ Child. Worth meditating on is Padre Pio's belief that Jesus is present to us now as the Christ Child, just as He was present as the Child some 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem. Since God lives in eternity, since He lives out of our time, since He is the same "yesterday, today, and forever," He--in all His infiniteness--is ever present to us. So now let's see what St. Padre Pio offers us concerning the Christ Child and our relationship to Him and our need for Him:

"May the heavenly Child look benevolently on your soul," says St. Padre Pio to you, "which is groaning beneath the blows of the divine mercy, and may the light that flooded the minds of the devout shepherds of Bethlehem enlighten your mind also and never abandon you. . . ." (Letters 1, p. 1334)

"On the happy occasion of the holy Nativity of the Infant Jesus, may you be pleased to receive my good wishes for everlasting well-being and eternal spiritual bliss," says St. Padre Pio to you. "This is the synthesis of the prayers I will offer for you before the cradle of the Infant Jesus during these holy days. May He be pleased to hear them all." (Letters 1, p. 1326)

"Live joyfully and courageously, at least in the upper part of the soul," says St. Padre Pio to you, "amidst the trials in which the Lord places you. Live joyfully and courageously, I repeat, because the Angel who foretells the birth of our little Savior and Lord, announces singing, and sings announcing that he brings tidings of joy, peace, and happiness to men of goodwill. So that there is nobody who does not know that in order to receive this Child, it is sufficient to be of goodwill. Even though up to the present this has not been very effective because He came to bless goodwill which, little by little, He will render fruitful and effective, as long as we allow ourselves to be governed by it. And I hope that we will do so. Do not fear the tricks of Satan, but despise them. Jesus is with you." (Letters 3, p. 470)

A most-blessed Christmas season to you, my friend!

Even Saints Take Time to Laugh

Even the Saints of God take time to laugh. I hope you do, too, my friend. Saint Padre Pio, even though he bore the five bleeding, painful wounds of Christ in his hands, feet, and side for fifty years, took time to smile and laugh and even tell "clean" jokes. One of Padre Pio's favorite jokes he often told is the following:

A poor peasant in Italy was traveling on a train bound for Naples. For some strange reason a Bishop ended up sitting next to the peasant. Before long a storm erupted outside, and the peasant stared out the window, watching and listening, seemingly unafraid, as the wind, rain, thunder, and lightning ripped across the Italian countryside and sky. It seemed as if the devil himself had taken charge and was punishing the earth. As the rain beat against the train windows and the lightning flashed outside and the thunder rumbled above the train roof, the Bishop, obviously alarmed and terribly afraid, said to the peasant, "It looks as if we are going to Hell!" The poor peasant, unafraid of the weather or death or even of the powerful Bishop, said, "I feel sorry for you. You must only have a one-way ticket. I have a return ticket, so I'm not afraid one bit."

One of the many spiritual gifts God gave Saint Padre Pio was the ability to notify people (by mysteriously having them smell sweet flowers when there were none around and when he himself was not there) that he was praying for them and that their prayers would be answered. (The theological term for this gift is Osmogenesia.) Many of the Saints had--and have--this gift.

So if you, my friend, ask Saint Padre Pio to intercede with Jesus for you, and if you soon smell roses or carnations or any sweet combination of flower fragrances, know that you will soon receive an answer. In fact, here is a true story to encourage you:

One day a young woman was near death and suffering horrendously in the hospital. Her young husband Harry, not knowing what to do for her to alleviate her pain and to keep her from dying, prayed and asked Saint Padre Pio to do what he could for her. Even though it was January and there were no flowers anywhere around the young man while he waited in the hospital room beside his unconscious wife, he smelled a strong scent of flowers. Here is what his wife said about the experience, after her miraculous recovery, of course:

"During the night a very strong fragance of flowers enveloped my hospital room. How strange. Where did it come from?"

But her husband Harry knew the answer. Padre Pio had been invisibly present in that hospital room and had obtained a healing for the woman through his intercession with Jesus.

Do you have a need today? Take your needs to Saint Padre Pio and ask him to do what he can to obtain answers and healings for you from Jesus. He will do it.

Unexpected, Unmistakable, Indisputable Healing

Do you or someone you love need a healing? Don't hesitate, my friend, to ask Saint Padre Pio to take your plea to Jesus and obtain an answer for you that will fill you with confidence and peace. Here is a true story to encourage you to go to Saint Padre Pio who will then go to Jesus for you.

While Saint Padre Pio was alive, he had thousands of friends, of course, but he also had enemies. One of those enemies was Alberto Del Fante, an atheist, Freemason, lawyer, and journalist by profession. At the time, Italian papers were reporting amazing facts about Saint Padre Pio and his many spiritual gifts and powers granted to him by God, such as the Stigmata (the five wounds of Christ Crucified which bled in Pio's hands, feet, and side for fifty years).

Alberto Del Fante scoffed at all the reports. He considered Padre Pio to be a fake; a man bent on mesmerizing and deceiving the people who flocked to him. Yes, Alberto the bigtime lawyer scoffed--until the unexpected, the unmistakable, and the indisputable occured in the life of his beloved nephew. You see, a relative had asked Saint Padre Pio to pray to Jesus for the little boy's healing, and . . . well, let Alberto Del Fante tell you in his own words:

"Several years ago, without even knowing Padre Pio," said Alberto, "I wrote some articles against him in the Florentine paper, Italia Laica. At that time I though him to be an impostor, a cunning man knowing how to deceive simple folk who are too easily moved to enthusiasm. Then there occurred the healing of my nephew which made me think. . . . . The undeniable truth is that my nephew, from being dangerously ill, has now become a frisky, healthy, happy boy." (From Doubt to Faith, by Alberto Del Fante, page 7)

There are thousands of similar stories of answered prayers, and millions of additional prayers are answered each and every day. Hopefully, over the years, I will have the opportunity to share many of them with you. For now, let Alberto's experience encourage you to take your requests to Saint Padre Pio and await the consoling reply.