3 Rare Videos of St. Padre Pio, the 20th Century Stigmatist

St. Pio of Pietrelcina, most commonly known as St. Padre Pio, was one of the Church’s greatest saint of the mid-20th century.

There are reports that he could “read souls” (e.g., miraculously know the sins of those who came to him for the Sacrament of Confession), bi-locate, and work other miracles. Those close to him say that he was regularly engaged in very direct spiritual combat with demonic forces. Most famously, he’s known for having had the gift of stigmata (in which the wounds of Christ miraculously appear on the person’s body) for the latter 50 years of his life.

But the most defining aspect of St. Padre Pio’s life – the part that made him a saint – was his great love of Jesus and his tireless efforts to bring others closer to Him.

Below are three fascinating videos that give a rare glimpse into the life of this particularly devoted and holy follower of Christ:

1) At his monastery

This first video was filmed at Our Lady of Grace Capuchin Friary, located in Italy’s Gargano mountains, where St. Padre Pio lived from 1916 until his death in 1968. The whole video is worth watching, but here are a few particularly noteworthy moments:

– From 0:55 to 1:43 you can see the monks dealing with the huge volume of mail for St. Padre Pio.

– At 4:23, you can see St. Padre Pio celebrating the old mass.

– At 8:01, he playfully hits the cameraman with his cincture as he’s walking by!

2) The last mass he celebrated

This second video is of him celebrating his final mass on September 22, 1968 – the day before his death. You’ll notice that he walks only with help, and that he celebrates much of the mass sitting down.

Most interestingly, though, is that starting at 3:22, with the camera zoomed in on him for the Eucharistic prayers, you can see that he’s wearing fingerless gloves. He did this to cover the miraculous wounds of his stigmata, which he had for 50 years.

3) His requiem mass

Finally, this third video is of his funeral, which was attended by over 100,000 people.