Conformed to Christ: St. Padre Pio

Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. Pius of Pietrelcina, a man better known simply as Padre Pio (1887–1968). Even before his death, Padre Pio was a source of fascination for many people, and stories of his remarkable holiness and supernatural gifts abound, some of which are truly astonishing, some of which border on outlandish, but all of which inspire us to take a closer look at this humble Capuchin friar, who was so intimately united with Christ in his heart, so closely conformed to Christ in his soul, that even his own body was also conformed to Christ, marked with the wounds of Christ’s Crucifixion.

Fr. Nathan O’Halloran, SJ, offers a fascinating glimpse of St. Pius of Pietrelcina in his Saturdays with the Saints lecture, available now as part of a free online course from the McGrath Institute entitled A Season with the Saints. View the lecture and reflect on the life of Padre Pio through the discussion questions provided, and consider how you might become more closely conformed to Christ in your own life through prayer and acts of charity. 

St. Pius of Pietrelcina, pray for us. 

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