By Fr Steve Rodrigues
September 23 is the feast of St Padre Pio, the first priest in the history of the Catholic Church to have received the Stigmata (the 5 wounds of Jesus). He is one of the greatest saints of all times

On June 16, 2002, Pope John Paul II canonised, in Rome, Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, one of the greatest saints of all times. There are saints who have been known for healing, “reading” souls, levitation, bilocation, Stigmata, apparition, “odour of sanctity”. There are saints who could understand languages they didn't know. But Padre Pio of Pietrelcina, who died on September 23, 1968, had all these charisms, and more. In fact, not since St Francis of Assisi has there been such a miracle-worker.
As a matter of fact, Padre Pio was the first priest in the history of the Catholic Church to bear the stigmata - the holy wounds of Christ. He bore the wounds for fifty years. A few minutes after his death, they mysteriously vanished.  The stigmata is perhaps the most well-known of the miracles associated with Padre Pio; despite his wanting to suffer alone, they brought him fame, and people from all over came to see him and to have him hear their confessions. His stigmata wounds also had the odour of sanctity, and smelled like roses and violets, though the blood, which is quick to decompose, should have given off an unpleasant odour. However, it was not the only miraculous aspect of Padre Pio’s incredible life. Aside from the visions he received of both Jesus and Our Lady, he was able to read souls, and would know if one was holding back in confession, he also displayed the gift of prophecy, and even had the gift of bilocation. There were also multiple instances of healing attributed to the Capuchin priest. The miracles continued after death as well; at least one well documented miracle of healing occurred in 2000 when a young boy, whose internal organs were failing, saw Padre Pio in a vision while in a coma, and then soon improved and awoke.
Like the Apostle Paul, Padre Pio placed at the centre of his life and apostolic work the Cross of his Lord as his strength, his wisdom and his glory. Inflamed by love of Jesus Christ, he became like Him in the sacrifice of himself for the salvation of the world. For Padre Pio, Faith was life: he willed everything and did everything in the light of Faith. He was assiduously devoted to prayer. He passed the day and a large part of the night in conversation with God. He would say: “In books we seek God, in prayer we find Him. Prayer is the key which opens God's heart.” Prayer is the oxygen of the soul. Faith led him always to accept God's mysterious will.
While most of us will not experience the visions and stigmata that Padre Pio did, his piety and love of God is a gift and a model for all to emulate. And though most of us will not suffer the direct, physical attacks of the Evil One as he did, Padre Pio’s strength, resistance and reliance on God, should also be a guide for us to follow, when we face temptations of the devil in the many more subtle and socially acceptable forms that permeate our modern society.
(Fr Steve Rodrigues, Capuchin Monte-De-Guirim, Goa)