Celebrating the centenary of the stigmata received by Padre Pio

IPOH: St Michael’s Church (SMC) Padre Pio group marked the celebration of St Pio’s feastday with a novena and evening Mass on Sept 23, celebrated by SMC parish priest Fr Stephen Liew.

This year marks the centenary of the reception of the stigmata by St Pio and the 50th anniversary of his death.

During the novena, petitions and thanksgiving letters were read out, including a letter from the Padre Pio group to St Pio, thanking him for his prayers and intercessions for their needs and those critically ill.

Thanking Mother Mary for her help, they also asked to be a source of energy for the sick, being strong in spirit, gentle of heart, courageous and compassionate. The group also thanked Fr Stephen Liew for his strong support and inspiration, wishing him good health and God’s blessings in his future parish.

One thanksgiving letter spoke of a patient who was in stage four of lung cancer and given only six months to live, yet, with the intercession of St Pio and spiritual support through the group, was still alive and healthy four years later.

Fr Liew, in his opening words at the Mass, asked the people to call to mind any person(s) who may need the intercession of St Pio for healing, restoration and good health.

In his homily, Fr Liew said the Christian mission is to serve “little children”, as Jesus did.

It means serving those who have no way of giving back to you, and not expecting anything in return.

“It is 100 per cent giving. Nowadays, no one goes to the least, the last and the little. Pope Francis, in his first year of papacy, invited us all to do this, because it is in knowing the least, the last and the little that we won’t have anything in return. He said the culture now is to go to the rich and powerful who have connections to help us. This is not the Christian attitude.

The Letter of St James speaks of the conversion of our ambition to rule, to take charge, into an attitude of serving. It means a conversion from having things done for us to doing things for others. We need to ask two questions: How can we use our gifts and talents to serve others, the country and Church? And what can we do for others?

It simply means using that gift or talent to benefit others rather than to be proud of oneself. There is the example of St Pio, who shared the wounds of Christ on his hands. Suffering came with it, and it is a gift of sharing, and the privilege of suffering with the wounds of Jesus.

“We have the relic of St Pio here in St Michael’s church, a piece of his mitten which he wore over his stigmata as he was a humble man. Padre Pio is present to us here in SMC.

“When he first received the stigmata, no one believed him and his fellow brothers and bishop banished him. He remained quiet until God changed the minds and hearts of those who chastised him. So St Pio also suffered humiliation, as well as the wounds of Christ, and that was his contribution.”

St Pio’s main aim was to relieve suffering, and so he built a hospital. “He created various prayer groups throughout the world so that other people would be able to serve the sick, especially the terminally ill. When we serve the ill, we don’t expect anything back. It is pure giving of our time. In our parish, the Padre pio group is doing a wonderful job as shown by the testimonies.

“The effectiveness of St Pio has enabled many more people to do things for others, and I invite more of you to join. St Pio said, “I can do more things after my death,” and because of this, many more people are sharing in his ministry to the sick.

“He needs our help to show that God refuses no one. It is through us and not only our devotions. We need to go out to the terminally ill (the last, the least and the little). We ask St Pio for his help in achieving this,” he said.

Article reproduced from Herald Malaysia online