Saint Padre Pio's Love for the Mother of God

Please let me share with you today the truth about Saint Padre Pio’s love for the Mother of Jesus, the Mother of God.

Saint Padre Pio, the famous stigmatist who bore the five ever-bleeding wounds of Christ Crucified for fifty years, intensely loved Jesus' mother. Padre Pio began having visions of her when he was only five years old in his home in Pietrelcina, Italy. In later years, when he shared about his visions with a fellow friar, the friar said, "But why didn't you tell us sooner about seeing Our Lady?" St. Padre Pio replied, "I thought everyone saw her!"

Padre Pio liked to call Our Lady "My little Mother," or "La mia Madonnina" in his native Italian. Often when he spoke to others about her, tears would flow from his eyes, his love was so intense. But did he love her more than he loved Jesus, her divine Son? He said to Our Lady, "You are so beautiful and sweet, if we humans did not know better, we would make you into a goddess." But Padre Pio never placed her above Jesus, above God. He knew she was a creature, just as he was a creature.

One day he said, "She treats me as if I were her only child on earth!" As Padre Pio always did, if you, my dear friend in Christ, turn to Our Lady right now and ask for her intercession, for her help, she will never fail you. How can she? She is always in the Presence of the Source of Life, the Ruler of All Nature, her Son, the One she bore in her womb. She is the Ark of the New Covenant (see Revelations). She is the New Eve. (See Genesis.)

Please take encouragement from St. Padre Pio. Even though he led a virtuous life, constantly in touch with God and Our Lady and his Holy Guardian Angel, he still needed to pray—all the time. He carried his rosary beads with him everywhere. He called them "our weapon." Even if you never pray the rosary, please seriously consider carrying rosary beads with you. They have the Cross of Christ Crucified on them, the sign of faith that the devil and all evil spirits hate. St. Padre Pio said, "Hold on tightly to your rosary. Be very grateful to the Madonna because it was she who gave us Jesus."

And if we have Jesus, we have Everything! Amen.