Now, we all struggle to forgive from time to time, but is there, in fact, a sin which
even God himself finds difficult to forgive?
Padre Pio said, "Yes, there is," but then immediately after that added that God also
knows how to wait, so please do join us for this video.
Good evening, friends, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to this channel Following Padre
Pio.
Here we have a series of short stories on the life of our incredible saint, so we investigate
his life.
He's a Capuchin friar, he's a mystic, a tremendous miracle worker.
Do stay tuned to find out more about him, and to see what Padre Pio's intercession can
do for you.
We do ask everyone to be part of this Padre Pio postulate, and you will really help us
if you like the video, and you share the video with your friends and colleagues.
Just a brief reminder that every Friday, we do have a Mass in which we bring your intentions
to Padre Pio in this Mass.
So, it's dedicated to Padre Pio, and to be part of this, all you have to do is enroll
your intentions, and you can see the video on the end screen how to do that.
Now, just a thought today, the more we thank God, and have gratitude for God, for what
he has done for us.
The more, in fact, we create the conditions for further blessings.
In this story, Adolfo Affatato was one of the last remaining or surviving spiritual
sons of Padre Pio.
He was now 82 years old, and yet despite this, he continued his ministry of speaking and
writing about Padre Pio.
This story is taken from one of his books, and he tells us that gratitude was a very
important thing to Padre Pio.
He spoke of it often.
One evening, Adolfo asked Padre Pio if God forgives all sins?
Padre Pio answered, "My son, God is a very good father, and he forgives everyone, yet
there is one sin that he does have difficulty forgiving, the ingratitude of man."
So, perhaps God has shown some incredible generosity to your or to I, in order to help
us to convert.
Yet, our hearts remain obstinate and hardened.
So, what must God do then?
Then Padre Pio added, "But he does know how to wait," so that is the secret.
What we're going to look at here is one of Padre Pio's missions that God had entrusted
to him was that of bringing back the lost sheep into the fold.
One day, Adolfo was asked to accompany a certain politician who now wished to visit and to
meet with Padre Pio, and so he went off to Foggia, the town about 40 kilometers away,
and he met this politician at the train station.
Then after that, they went for a little lunch somewhere, and they started speaking.
His new friend spoke in a manner that struck Adolfo as full of presumption, quite a proud
person, and he came across as one who felt that he could just do whatever he wanted.
So, is there anything new under the sun, a politician for whom everything is relative
and up for grabs?
He went on to say that in his lifetime, in fact, he had made three vows to God, and that
he had never even kept one of them.
So, this was being spoken over lunch between Adolfo and the politician, Padre Pio had nothing
to do with this.
But now the politician had heard of Padre Pio, and he wished to place himself under
the Capuchin's direction.
So, then later on, they now finished their meal, they went through to the friary, San
Giovanni Rotondo, Adolfo and the politician then went up the stairs to wait for Padre
Pio.
Padre Pio was obviously praying in his cell, in his little room.
When he did come out of his cell to go downstairs, it was now time for the men's confession.
Padre Pio said, "Praise be to Jesus," so that was his usual custom, and then turning to
Adolfo he said, "Who is this you have today?"
Adolfo responded, "Father, this gentleman would like your blessing."
Instead, Padre Pio said, "Nice stuff you brought me here, tell him that he made a vow three
times, and three times he failed to keep it, and this is now the last chance God is giving
him, and that he should go before the blessed sacrament and should ask for forgiveness for
his sins."
Then without even greeting the politician, Padre Pio proceeded downstairs to hear their
confessions.
These days, we certainly hear a lot about the need for pastoral accompaniment of the
sinner.
But are these some sort of magical or talismanic words, accompaniment, that gets everyone into
heaven free?
Let us suppose a person is the most radical pro-abortion advocate that there is, are we
just expected to pastorally accompany them?
What would Padre Pio's view of this be?
Let's have a look and see how Padre Pio accompanies.
Now, Padre Pio hadn't even greeted the politician, and he went straight downstairs, and Adolfo
was struck by this.
So, Padre Pio had not given the impression that everything is okay, he was perhaps a
little bit rude in this.
Yet, it was another episode of one of the many in which Adolfo experienced first-hand
the supernatural gifts of Padre Pio.
Although Adolfo usually experienced the very endearing, and the paternal side of Padre
Pio, here he was seeing the other side, the harsh side, in which Padre Pio was being stern
towards those who had sinned, and were sinning against God, and neglected their duties as
a Christian.
No one except the politician, of course, and Padre Pio knew exactly what these sins were,
what he was guilty of, the vows he had broken, anything like that.
But Padre Pio had this special gift, he could read the souls, and he could see what others
could not see.
At this point, Adolfo sensed an icy emptiness that had just overcome the politician, and
he watched as the politician then broke down in tears, because he was now facing a crisis
of his redemption.
Well, later on a Father Honorato told Adolfo that he asked Padre Pio about this incident,
had he not been too harsh with a politician?
Without even a hesitation, Padre Pio responded, "If you could scrutinize souls, you would've
seen that in that man's heart there were not just seven deadly sins, but 70."
Then Padre Pio pointed to a glass of water right there on the table, said, "Do you see
this glass full of water?
If you don't empty it of its filth and fill it with God's love, there will never be peace."
It's a two-part process, getting rid of the filth, and then filling in with God's love.
Adolfo later heard that after that encounter, the politician had begun now to radically
change his life.
The doors of his heart, which had been so blocked by pride, possessions, and all of
that, they were now open, and he was filled with charity.
Through this intervention, the time for God's action had now arrived.
The politician repented and converted, and as Padre Pio said, "God knows how to wait."
This had proved to be so true.
Next time on this channel, we're going to see where Padre Pio grew up, his hometown,
and also his home environment.
So, these things that produce the great saint that we have, please do join us for that talk.
If you're new to our channel or not subscribed, do make sure that you have subscribed to this
channel, and also click the reminder bell, so you'll receive notifications of future
videos that we make.
Just a reminder that it would be tremendous if you were to enroll your prayer petitions
for Friday's Mass, dedicated to Padre Pio.
You can see the video on the end screen and how to do that.