Francesco Forgione was born in Pietrelcina, in southern Italy, in 1887. His parents were poor farmers, whose eight children attended Mass and prayed the Rosary daily, and abstained from meat three ...

On this day 20 years ago, more than 300,000 people crowded into St. Peter’s Square as Pope John Paul II canonized St. Pio of Pietrelcina, calling his life a witness to the “glory of the cross.” St.

Padre Pio, whose real name was Francesco Forgione, was born to Giuseppe and Grazio Forgione in Pietrelcina, Italy on May 25, 1887. Although the Forgiones were basically a poor family, they were very ...