St. Peter Catholic Church
  • Home
  • From The Pastor
  • Online Streaming
    • Mass Archives
  • Parish Info
    • Welcome
    • Mass & Reconciliation
    • Sacramental Information
    • Register With Parish
    • RESOURCES
    • Parish Team
    • Photo Gallery
  • Education
    • OCIA
    • Guardian Angel
    • Religious Education >
      • RE Registration
      • RE Online Payment
      • Sacrament Information
    • Vacation Bible School
    • Catholic Education
    • SCRIP
  • Ministry
    • YOUTH MINISTRY
    • Ministry Schedule
    • CAMPUS MINISTRY
    • Parish Ministries
  • News
    • Parishioner News
    • DIOCESAN NEWS
    • Weekly Bulletin
    • Weekly Calendar
    • Monthly Look
    • Upcoming Events
    • St Peter Columbarium
  • Stewardship
    • Online Giving
    • Opportunities

September 29, 2019

9/26/2019

0 Comments

 
                                               "Love Our Lady and make her loved;
                           always recite the Rosary and recite it as often as possible."
                                                            — St. Padre Pio


My Encounters with St. Pio of Pietrelcina
 
On September 23, 1968, the 43rd day of my birth, Padre Pio was born into heaven. Our paths have crossed several times since then. The first time our paths crossed, as I recall, was in the early days of my spiritual revival in early 1992. It was at St. Dominic Catholic Church, Yaba, Lagos, my home parish in Nigeria where I had gone to the bookshop to find books on doctrinal teachings of the church on Mary and the saints so I could explain this catholic devotion to my Pentecostal friends. And behold on one of the book stands was the picture of this bearded man staring at me; it did not matter where I stood in the bookshop, it kept staring at me. When I could not resist any longer, I decided to take a closer look at it and that was the moment Padre Pio invited me to become his spiritual son-I did not at that time know there was a prayer group founded by him and of thousands of spiritual sons and daughters he birthed by it. This was the moment seed of my vocation to religious life and priesthood was planted.
 
The next major encounter with Padre Pio was late 1992 when I visited my benefactors. This family who lived across the road from my family house helped me spiritually and financially to get ready for my application to the Dominican formation house. The first thing I saw on entering their parlor was the imposing picture of Padre Pio with his famous “inviting look.” I felt called to the priesthood, to a crucified life with Christ when I saw this picture of Padre Pio on this particular day. I knew there was no turning back at this point, Padre Pio was definitively backing my desire to embrace the vocation to religious life and priesthood!
 
At my solemn profession of religious vows, I announced my name as Bernard Mary Pio and many of my brothers till this day still refer to me as Benny Pio! My connection to Padre Pio grew throughout my priestly formation years and I always sought his help and tried to imitate his love for the crucified Christ My ordination day was set for August 8, 2000 and by some divine “machination” midway into a novena to Padre Pio, the date was moved to September 23, 2000! It did not occur to me at the time that it was the day Padre Pio died, it was only in retrospect, after his canonization in 2002 that it occurred to me that it was not accidental that my ordination day in 2000 was moved from August to September 23, the feast day of St. Pio of Pietrelcina! 
 
I am a proud spiritual son and a strong devotee of this holy man. I have experienced many graces through his intercession and pray others experience the same. His life is a reflection of Christ crucified. For 50 years he bore the stigmata of Christ Jesus on his body as a testimony to his closeness to Jesus crucified. His love for the Eucharist and the Blessed Mother is exemplary. He followed Christ faithfully and Christ lived in him. Padre Pio taught us how to love and pray to our Guardian Angel and to pray the rosary, a devotion we are called especially to in the month of October. St. Pio loves all his spiritual children, praying they make it to heaven: ”I belong entirely to everyone. Everyone can say: ‘Padre Pio is mine’…. Lord, I am staying at the gates of Paradise; I will go in when I have seen the last of my children enter.” Padre Pio, pray for us.    
 Fr.  Bernard
 
 
 
 
 
 

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Parish Office Hours

Monday - Thursday

9:00am - 4:00pm

Fridays: Closed



Address

Mailing Address:  
1840 Marshall Drive
Elizabethtown, PA 17
022

GPS Address:
904 Mill Road
Elizabethtown, PA 17022

Contact Us

Phone: 717-367-1255
Fax: 717-367-1270

Email: bulletininfo@stpeteretown.org



© St. Peter Catholic Church. 2019. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • From The Pastor
  • Online Streaming
    • Mass Archives
  • Parish Info
    • Welcome
    • Mass & Reconciliation
    • Sacramental Information
    • Register With Parish
    • RESOURCES
    • Parish Team
    • Photo Gallery
  • Education
    • OCIA
    • Guardian Angel
    • Religious Education >
      • RE Registration
      • RE Online Payment
      • Sacrament Information
    • Vacation Bible School
    • Catholic Education
    • SCRIP
  • Ministry
    • YOUTH MINISTRY
    • Ministry Schedule
    • CAMPUS MINISTRY
    • Parish Ministries
  • News
    • Parishioner News
    • DIOCESAN NEWS
    • Weekly Bulletin
    • Weekly Calendar
    • Monthly Look
    • Upcoming Events
    • St Peter Columbarium
  • Stewardship
    • Online Giving
    • Opportunities