September 24, 2004

Dear Friends,

This week we celebrate the feast of a very holy Franciscan known to millions as “Padre Pio”. When anyone speaks of Padre Pio they cannot fail to mention the extraordinary phenomena which accompanied his life, such as the ability to read hearts in the confessional and, of course, the stigmata. Yet it was not for these reasons that Padre Pio is now a saint.

When a person is canonized, the Church says to us: “This person is worthy to be publicly venerated”. While your grandmother might have been very holy, and a saint to all who knew her, don’t attempt to put her name in the litany of the saints or print holy cards with a halo around her head!

Canonization means this person has been “tried, tested, and true”. In fact, one part of the extensive proceedings involves a “devil’s advocate”, a term which means “a lawyer”. Yes, the devil has a lawyer – and he lives in the Vatican! Well, you know this title is simply a figure of speech, yet commonly used because this man’s job is to prove that a person should not get “on the list”!

Most certainly a significant part of the process is the gathering of witnesses. Extensive interviews with anyone who knew the would-be saint must follow a strict procedure, while a careful examination of all the person’s writings are conducted by theologians. Finally, some evidence of heavenly intercession is also important; yet even here, the “devil’s advocate” tries to find a way to prove that what appears to be supernatural is actually the result of mere natural coincidence. These lawyers are tough!

Padre Pio was not canonized because he had the ability to read hearts, or because he fought with the devil, or because he had the wounds of Christ for fifty years. No, it is because he, perhaps like your grandmother, consistently trusted and hoped in God and served his neighbor to a heroic degree especially when it was difficult, inconvenient, and seemingly impossible. Now you have two examples of holiness, one with a halo, the other with a hat pin – how many do you need?

Fr. Glenn Sudano, CFR
Community servant, residing at St. Felix Friary in Yonkers

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