Boston's Cardinal Sean O'Malley Gives Homily on St. Pio Feast "In a world where pain is seen as the greatest evil, Padre Pio shows us the power of the cross." in Italy

Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley, age 78, archbishop of Boston and Capuchin friar minor, presided over the solemn Eucharistic celebration for the liturgical feast of St. Pio of Pietrelcina. He delivered the homily in the new church dedicated to San Pio da Pietrelcina in San Giovanni Rotondo.

Homily Excerpts:

“He would have been very happy to lead a hidden life and be one of those anonymous saints who go unnoticed and unknown. In today's Gospel, Jesus praises his heavenly Father for having 'hidden these things from the wise and learned and revealed to the little ones.' Padre Pio was one of those little ones to whom God revealed himself. But in God's plan, this poor and simple farmer was destined to become an instrument for revealing God's loving presence and mercy to the whole world ”. The cardinal recalled that “Padre Pio has borne the weight of the stigmata for five decades, this and many other physical sufferings have been endured with love and patience. In a world where pain is seen as the greatest evil, Padre Pio shows us the power of the cross. He shows us that the greatest evil is not pain, but sin and selfishness. Pain can be a double-edged sword that turns against ourselves, leads to self-pity, anger or despair ”. So card. O'Malley invited the faithful to “ask Padre Pio to pray for us and teach us to pray, love and heal. We pray that he will lend us that ladder that will allow us to climb the Cross and lovingly tear the nails from the hands of our brothers and sisters who are, as Mother Teresa said: 'Christ in a painful disguise' ”. Yesterday, with the participation of numerous faithful, devotees and prayer groups, the traditional Prayer Vigil was held in the churchyard of the Sanctuary. The liturgical feast ends in the afternoon with Holy Mass presided over by Msgr. Franco Moscone, archbishop of Manfredonia-Vieste-San Giovanni Rotondo and president of Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, which will be followed by the procession of the statue of the Saint through the streets of the town.

Source: SIR