Any Christian, whether Catholic or Protestant, can only draw closer to God after listening to Padre Pio's life story. I highly recommend that all take the time to view it. The sheer number of documented miracles alone will uplift your spirit.

I think God abandoned humanity here on Earth about 2,000 years ago.

Hope I'm wrong.  And hope you're right.

The entire issue of the stigmata is interesting.  Typical painting and sculpture representations of Christ's crucifixion show the nails through the palms of the hands, where Pio had his wounds.  In recent years people started calling him a fraud based on cadavaric studies that suggested that nails were actually put through the wrist bones.  The rational was, if it was truly a God given stigmata, that the wounds were in the wrong place since the nails were not actually put through the palm.  Hence that they were fake.

It is true that if you put nails through the hands in the palm, between the metacarpals, the tissue would not support the body weight and victim's hands would literally pull through the nails.  However, you can place a nail a bit more proximally through the carpal bones and it would be likely to support the upper body.  They also sometimes lashed a victim's arms to the cross to further suspend them.  Putting the nails through the carpal bones in the proximal palms is compatible with his wounds.

Interesting article:

https://onepeterfive.com/crucifixion-christ-nails/

Thank you.  My kids love St. Pio.



Considering centuries of iconography showing the wounds through the hands instead of wrists, it seems to me that any stigmata differing from common understanding would be distracting from its own main purpose.

St. Pio, pray for us.

Padre Pio was in no way a fraud. Here I a modern accident that shows placement that would be right

Attached File

*sigh*  I need to get a good bio of Padre Pio.

I have stacks of unread books laying around from Tan's and Sophia Institute's 35-40% off Christmas sales.

I’m really curious about his ability to bi-locate. Did he remember being in both locations at the same time?

I'm not an expert on Padre Pio. Some here know a lot about him. I would be curious as well.

Can you imagine all of the suffering he endured?

Everyone wants to be a Saint, until it's time to do Saint stuff.

Many of the saints and mystics were chosen by Jesus to be "victim souls" and they welcomed their multiple ailments and sufferings as strange as that sounds to "normal" people who scream blasphemies every time they get a paper cut. Other than partaking in a pinch of tobacco snuff or sip of beer once in a while the "devils advocates" for sainthood found St. Pio to be without vice. His caloric intake wouldn't have kept a bird alive much less a full grown man yet he was never thin.

Neither of these are vices by the Church's standards so long as moderation is adhered to, but I think I know what you mean.

Yes he knew he was in both places. Many US Army Air Corps have testimony also, of a "flying monk" when they flew by San Giovanni Rotunda. They explained that their bomb bay doors would just open and the bombs would fall without command in harmless farmland. One pilot has an account of meeting Padre Pio after the war and says it was him.

Venerable Mary of Agreda is part of Texas History.... and never left Spain. When Spanish explorers made it into New Mexico and Texas. They were greeted by large tribes of Indians wanting to be Baptised. They all described "a Lady in blue" had taught them & told them the Franciscans would come.. One account, San Angelo Texas, the explorers were surrounded by up to 2000 Indians. Men women & Children. They carried Rosaries, and knew how to pray them. They called her the "Woman in Blue." Per legend, where ever she appeared Bluebonnets would blossom on her departure.

Legend of the Lady in Blue.


ETA: in no way am I trying to deflect from the greatness of St. Padre Pio. Just another miraculous example of bilocation that is still documented in Spanish Archives.

Thank you so much skid!!!!

I had a feeling you appreciate that info ValleyGunner. People don't realize how Texas is Catholic from the beginning. For whatever faults Spain evangelize the world. May God Bless Texas.

Yes, but there is bi-location by entering a non-responsive meditative state and appearing somewhere else like Mary of Agreda but St. Pio could appear at two places at once while performing separate duties. Checkmate!