The Pandemic Of Padre Pio

As people everywhere seek to make sense of the Covid-19 coronavirus plaguing the world today - the sense of darkness, abandonment, and suffering - Padre Pio shows us the way he faced the Spanish Influenza of 1918-1920 pandemic in his own day.

Padre Pio is known as the priest with the stigmata, the five wounds of Christ, which he bore for fifty years. They are many books telling of his miracles, healings, spiritual gifts of bilocation, reading of consciences, prophecies, and many more. There are none written specifically on the theology of Padre Pio--the spiritual principles he lived by. These principles can be summed up in the understanding of Redemptive Suffering. It was "the way of Padre Pio." In his own words, St. Pio tells us how to love the Mass, his participation in the Mass, the Madonna, how to pray, to survive the Dark Night, as well as its purpose, the importance of purgatory, and how to use the pain in our life to sanctify ourself and others. Most importantly, he tells us why God allows suffering, its purpose in our lives, and how to heal others with it. Any spiritual child of Padre Pio who seeks to know and understand this saint will find, in simple words, how to live out the spiritual principles he lived by.Filled with over four hundred citations and sixty references from St. Pio and other Redemptive Suffering saints, such as St. Faustina Kowalska, St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and St. Teresa of Avila, The Way of Padre Pio is well documented. Each saint offers their understanding and experiences of suffering and how they used it to live joyous lives, and not only live joyously but heal others with it.The Way of Padre Pio weaves the basic tools of Redemptive Suffering--penance and reparation, which take the form of suffering and sacrifice--into common areas of life and how to use them to sanctify ourself and others. It is how to live the Redemptive Life in all circumstances and answer Mary's call at Fatima to offer ourselves as Victims for the salvation of the world.There are additional resources through the website, friendsofpadrepio.com, that include bookmarks, prayers, and reading materials, as well as how to begin a prayer group at your parish.

Adolfo Affatato is one of the last living spiritual sons of St. Pio of Pietrelcina. Recently translated into English, "Padre Pio and I" is the culmination of what he witnessed as he sat by the saint's side for sixteen years. This is not a typical biography by a journalist, friar, or academic; instead, the author presents "the Padre" intimately and personally -- as a father figure who tenderly guided and directed him. This book is filled with riveting new accounts of the mystical side of Padre Pio: from the moment Affatato was called by name by Padre Pio out of a crowd to Padre Pio's characteristic rose-scented fragrance Affatato does not disappoint. Yet, the author's motivation for writing this book is not to boast of supernatural phenomena he was privileged to witness. Instead, it is a response to what Padre Pio once told him some six decades ago: "Give the love that I have put into your heart to those to whom you draw near, because in this is the meaning of life." And Adolfo has spent his adult life responding to that mandate. While most octogenarians spend their final years in repose, Adolfo tirelessly traverses the Italian peninsula giving conferences to audiences of a few dozen or a few thousand. He has spoken to popes, cardinals and countesses and regularly appears on Catholic radio and secular prime-time talk shows alike. And he never accepts a cent for his work; all proceeds for his book sales are donated to a charity. Now for the first time what Adolfo received from Padre Pio is available in English. For those who want to know Padre Pio "more and better" this book is a must read. "This book has touched the heart of Italy; yet, it also touched me. This book can change your life." Andrea Bocelli

God is to be found in the simplest of our daily activities and especially through total surrender to whatever is His will for each of us. That is the message of this 18th-century inspirational classic by Jean-Pierre de Caussade. Its encouragement to ""live in the present moment,"" accepting everyday obstacles with faith, humility and love, has guided generations of believers to holiness and spiritual peace. This special volume of the famous spiritual treatise also includes the many insightful letters of Father de Caussade on the practice of self-abandonment. These numerous letters provide a great additional source of wisdom and practical guidance for how to grow in abandonment and to deepen our union with God in our daily lives. De Caussade shows that this practice of self-abandonment to God's will is the key to attaining true peace and virtue, and that it is readily available to all people - from beginners to those well advanced in the spiritual life. He also shows how to determine what God's will is for us. He reveals that it is not extraordinary feats that God expects for our growth in holiness, but rather heroic attention to every detail in our lives and humble acceptance of our daily lot in life as coming from His hand. The rich spiritual lessons in this book have stood the test of time, offering real and practical assistance to all people because its message is simple and clear, one that the reader will find to be a rare treasure of inspiration and direction to be referred to again and again.

In this urgent outpouring of American voices, our poets speak to us as they shelter in place, addressing our collective fear, grief, and hope from eloquent and diverse individual perspectives. “One of the best books of poetry of the year . . . Quinn has accomplished something dizzying here: arranged a stellar cast of poets . . . It is what all anthologies must be: comprehensive, contradictory, stirring.” —The Millions **Featuring 107 poets, from A to Z—Julia Alvarez to Matthew Zapruder—with work in between by Jericho Brown, Billy Collins, Fanny Howe, Ada Limón, Sharon Olds, Tommy Orange, Claudia Rankine, Vijay Seshadri, and Jeffrey Yang** As the novel coronavirus and its devastating effects began to spread in the United States and around the world, Alice Quinn reached out to poets across the country to see if, and what, they were writing under quarantine. Moved and galvanized by the response, the onetime New Yorker poetry editor and recent former director of the Poetry Society of America began collecting the poems arriving in her inbox, assembling this various, intimate, and intricate portrait of our suddenly altered reality. In these pages, we find poets grieving for relatives they are separated from or recovering from illness themselves, attending to suddenly complicated household tasks or turning to literature for strength, considering the bravery of medical workers or working their own shifts at the hospital, and, as the Black Lives Matter movement has swept the globe, reflecting on the inequities in our society that amplify sorrow and demand our engagement. From fierce and resilient to wistful, darkly humorous, and emblematically reverent about the earth and the vulnerability of human beings in frightening times, the poems in this collection find the words to describe what can feel unspeakably difficult and strange, providing wisdom, companionship, and depths of feeling that enliven our spirits. A portion of the advance for this book was generously donated by Alice Quinn and the poets to Chefs for America, an organization helping feed communities in need across the country during the pandemic.

This colorful memoir offers a rare, up-close glimpse of the life and personality of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, the beloved Italian monk who was blessed with extraordinary gifts. The late Fr. Amorth—well-known as an exorcist —enjoyed over two decades of a close friendship with the holy, quirky Padre Pio, whom he considered his spiritual father. Adding his own personal experience to a foundation of biographical research, Amorth gives an entertaining and illuminating account of perhaps one of the best-known saints of the twentieth century. In this book, we span from Padre Pio''s childhood—where he cured himself of a disease by wolfing down all his mother''s fried bell peppers—to his miracle-filled priesthood, to his Italian gift for mimicry, humor, and storytelling. Rather than a plaster image of a saint, this book is a portrait of a fully human kind of holiness, proof that even the most astonishing graces can be lived out with simplicity and joy.

St. Pio of Pietrelcina had a deep devotion to the Christ Child. The man more commonly known as Padre Pio also possessed extraordinary and unique mystical gifts: Jesus often came to him in the form of a little child. In Welcoming the Christ Child with Padre Pio, stories about the saint known for his stigmata and ability to bilocate are woven with scripture and prayer to help you experience Advent—Padre Pio’s favorite season—with greater hope and joy. Each day of Advent you will read an account from someone who knew Padre Pio, including his Capuchin brothers’ amazement as they witnessed Padre Pio walking the halls of the monastery, cradling an apparition of the Christ Child; the miraculous healing of Vera Marie Calandra, who was blessed by the Franciscan monk as an infant and whose parents later founded the National Centre for Padre Pio; and examples of the extraordinary spiritual gifts of this holy confessor, including his stigmata, his ability to bilocate and read hearts, and the healing gifts that flowed from his fervent devotion to the Holy Family. This book contains daily readings for Advent. Each day includes a quotation from Padre Pio, a short story about the saint, a scripture reflection, and prayer to help you follow this extraordinary saint’s example and welcome the Christ Child into your home and heart during Advent. An appendix includes additional resources and prayers to learn more about Padre Pio.

Let the Holy Spirit lead you to the Living Water that feeds our well of faith. When asked about his spiritual gifts of healing, bilocation, prophecy, and stigmata, Padre Pio replied, “You know, they are a mystery to me, too.” While you might think he is just being modest, he is actually getting at the heart of how the Holy Spirit works in every Christian’s life. We can’t fully understand why God gives us certain gifts, but as we walk with Christ, we can engage with this mystery and journey towards holiness. In Welcoming the Holy Spirit with Padre Pio, Susan De Bartoli shares stories and wisdom from the life of this humble monk to show how we can use our unique spiritual gifts to love others and draw from the well of faith to encounter Christ in profound ways. Following the success of her Advent devotional, Welcoming the Christ Child with Padre Pio, Susan De Bartoli invites you to explore Padre Pio’s relationship with the third member of the Blessed Trinity, the Holy Spirit, who is the source of all spiritual gifts. Through the stories of this simple Capuchin priest, you’ll discover what is possible for those who surrender themselves to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. At Baptism, we all receive the fruits of the Spirit—gifts like wisdom, fortitude, and piety—that empower us to “dive deep” into the well of faith. The Holy Spirit also graces some of us with special charisms—supernatural gifts such as healing, teaching, or intercessory abilities—intended to serve the Church. In this book, you’ll learn how to nurture these gifts, just as Padre Pio did, so that even your “ordinary“ spiritual gifts and charisms can bless others and deepen your own faith. Each chapter offers quotations from Padre Pio, a short story about the saint, prayer, and reflection questions that you can apply to your own life, such as: What are my spiritual gifts and how have I seen them play out in my life already? Am I consistently drinking from the well of faith? What does the Lord want me to do with my life, and how can I use my spiritual gifts to serve the Church? Am I willing to surrender even the good things in my life to glorify the Lord? Welcoming the Holy Spirit with Padre Pio is the perfect companion for those who are already drawn to Padre Pio’s spirituality or anyone yearning to strengthen their relationship with the Holy Spirit. Through the example of this extraordinary saint, you will discover how continually drawing from the well of Living Water can drastically change your everyday walk with Christ.