Italian Saint Ready for Viewing

CHAN:
Padre Pio is a very popular Catholic saint. Now his exhumed body is being shown in a crystal, marble and silver sepulchre in the Italian town of San Giovanni Rotondo where he spent most of his life.

STORY:
Padre Pio, he's one of the Roman Catholic church's most popular saints and was considered a miracle worker by his devotees.

Now 40 years after his death his body is being displayed for the first time.

Thousands have flocked to the southern Italian town of San Giovanni Rotondo to glimpse the saint's exhumed body.

His face has been reconstructed with a lifelike silicone mask of the type used in wax museums because it was apparently too decomposed to show. But that's not put off these pilgrims.

[Marlene, Dutch Pilgrim]:
"I don't mind, you can see it's Padre Pio, I don't mind."

The economy of San Giovanni Rotondo revolves exclusively around the cult of Padre Pio.

The monk spent most of his life here and was said to have the stigmata, the bleeding wounds of Jesus' crucifixion on his hands and feet.
A spokesman for the Capuchin monks said 750,000 pilgrims had already booked places to view the body up till the end of December.

Although a magazine poll several years ago found more Italian Catholics prayed to Padre Pio than to any other figure he was dogged by fraud accusations throughout his life.

A book last year suggested he was a self-harming man who might have used carbolic acid to cause his wounds.

Church officials have denied he was a fake.

Category:

News & Politics

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• ntdtv
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• Padre
• Pio
• Roman
• Catholic
• San
• Giovanni
• Rotondo
• body

[Daughterofstpio]

Padre Pio pray for us all. May God have mercy on this world.

Pax et Bonum

[dshulette]

St. Pio, Pray For Us!

[Randeezy72]

@DanielR305 its all about the money

[Delmonegos]

@hatethesinnotsinner

Amen, and Amen!!!

Do not scoff this little Holy Man

[tokyogarden225]

Rubbish.



[DanielR305]

instead of pitting a silicone mask on his face why didn't they put a nice cloth on his face! as they do with other saints but what I found quite amasing they said his face is too decomposed to view yet there are quite a few saint whom I feel should be covered or remade to look more dignified yet they do nothing to their faces so why pio any different?

[sail1948]

I expect he's spending eternity in his own version of heaven: non stop buggering of small boys.

[respect9898]

disgusting. let the man rip

[tenorismo]

All bodies decompose. whether Latin or Orthodox Saints. When a Saints remains are " incurupt" it is a from of mummification. No one can return from the grave perfect . There is Only one who returned . Not perfect but Glorified. Jesus Christ.

[hatethesinnotsinner]

yes,that is what i read his body was found in a nearly perfect state of preservation. St.Pio was a holy man of God and people would do well to listen to his prophecies about the 3 days of darkness.

[STHFGDBY]

This report is mistaken. Padre Pio had a small piece of decomposition on his scalp otherwise he is perfectly preserved.. They do put a light wax on the face to enhance it for public viewing..