The relics of St. Pio of Pietrelcina — Padre Pio — are coming next month to Maui and Oahu.
Padre Pio is the well-known 20th century Italian mystic with miraculous healing powers who bore the stigmata, the wounds of Jesus Christ.
Six relics, which have been touring the United States since last year, will be at Holy Rosary Church in Paia, 6 a.m.-9 p.m., Nov. 8, with a Mass at 6:30 p.m. celebrated by Msgr. Terrence Watanabe; and at the Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace, 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m., Nov. 9, with a Mass at 6 p.m. celebrated by Msgr. Gary Secor.
The relics of St. Pio to be displayed for public veneration are the saint’s glove, crusts of the wounds, cotton-gauze with blood stains, lock of hair, his mantle, and a Pio’s handkerchief soaked with his sweat hours before he died.
St. Pio was born on May 25, 1887, in Pietrelcina, Italy, and baptized Francesco Forgione. He joined the Capuchin Franciscan order at age 15, taking the name Pio, and was ordained a priest in 1910 at 23.
His stigmata appeared during World War I, after Pope Benedict XV asked Christians to pray for an end to the conflict. Padre Pio had a vision in which Christ pierced his side. A few weeks later, on Sept. 20, 1918, Jesus again appeared to him and he received the full stigmata. It remained with him until his death on Sept. 23, 1968, at age 81.
Even before his death, Padre Pio’s reputation for holiness and extraordinary spiritual gifts circled the globe, eventually drawing hundreds of thousands of people, including the future Pope John Paul II, to seek his advice and blessing.
Beatifying the Italian Capuchin in 1999, Pope John Paul praised him for the long hours he spent hearing confessions, for his charitable work for the poor and the sick, and for his ascetic practices.
The pope also praised Blessed Padre Pio’s obedience and steadfast faith in the face of Vatican-ordered suspension of his public ministry and investigations into his mental health after he developed the stigmata. St. John Paul II canonized him in 2002.
The Saint Pio Foundation is the organizer of the tour. Funds raised by the foundation provide grants to American Catholic healthcare, educational, social, religious, and cultural partner organizations. More information about the Saint Pio Foundation can be found at www.saintpiofoundation.org.
Books about Padre Pio are available at the Pauline Bookstore downtown including “Padre Pio: Glimpse into the Miraculous” and “Secrets of a Soul.”
For more information, contact the Office of Worship at 585-3342 or ealmuena@rcchawaii.org. Volunteers are needed.