Free Republic

On this feast of St. Pio I decided to revisit a homily I delivered earlier this year, when my parish dedicated a special chapel in his name. A snip: One of my favorite stories about him happened during the early 1960s Italy was in crisis. The Red Brigade was sparking violence in Rome, and it was considered dangerous to travel around the country. For protection, people began carrying pictures of Padre Pio. During this time, Padre Pio had to leave his village to visit Rome, and one of the other friars asked him, “Aren’t you worried about the Red Brigade?”...

(ANSA) - San Giovanni Rotondo, January 6 - Plans to exhume the body of Padre Pio, the Italian saint famed for his perpetually bleeding hands and supernatural powers, are meeting vigorous opposition from some of his relatives. San Pio's niece, Pia Forgione, and her eight children have already begun legal action aimed at stopping the exhumation and a formal court appeal will soon be lodged, it emerged on Monday. Archbishop Domenico Umberto D'Ambrosio has announced that the body of San Pio - who is still known to devotees as Padre Pio - will be taken out of his tomb...