PADRE PIO AND THE PROSTITUTE IN LONDON
In the 1960s, during the last years of Padre Pio’s life, a desperate prostitute in London wrote to him. She was in hock to a pimp who dragged her out onto the street every night and made her sell herself for money.
Pio’s assistant, Alessio wrote back to her on behalf of the Second St Francis and assured her he would pray for her with all his heart. A short while later, the lady was in touch; she had freed herself from her captor and was no longer a prostitute. Pio raised his eyes to heaven and said, “Deo gratias”.
This account from Padre Pio and You and much more was discussed in my conversation with the valiant Jim O’Day of Integrity Restored.
Hello Mary,
ReplyDeleteI wrote a few weeks ago with a question re St. Philomena.
I’m wondering if you can clarify on the following: I believe I read somewhere on your excellent blog that Padre Pio advised weekly confession to aid in spiritual growth. Am I mistaken?
Today, I went to a Church I don’t often frequent to confess before the Divine Mercy feast tomorrow.
After a long wait, I went into the Confessional. The priest, who I do not know, seemed to gaze at my prayer book that I had in hand to mark the page with the Act of Contrition. (It was a face-to face confessional). He said there is a long line outside and I cannot give him long confession and I should be respectful of others waiting.
I stated I am aware of the line and will be brief. He persisted with telling me I must not do a long confession, and as I reiterated my intent at brevity, he interrupted me and asked when my last confession had occurred.
I told him 1 week ago. He became impatient and said that I didn’t need confessional, but counseling.
I stated that I had
I not even begun my confession and it is my belief that many people make weekly confessions. He stated “I’m not talking about other people, I’m talking about you.”
He allowed me to start the confession, then cut me off in mid sentence, and told me my penance was 3 Our Fathers.
On leaving he again said to me that I need counseling and mentioned scrupulosity.
I left downhearted and rather embarrassed.
I am wondering, is weekly confession too much, did I misunderstand this? Or perhaps the priest was stressed with the long line and the fact that he was the only priest hearing all those confessions. Or perhaps a bit of both.
I’ve learned so much from your blog and I know you are very knowledgeable about our faith.
Can you clarify what Padre Pio said about confession?
Many thanks and blessed Feast of Divine Mercy to you.
Anne-Marie
Hello, Anne-Marie, I hope you are having a blessed Easter. Yes, Padre Pio advised his children to go to confession weekly, comparing the soul to a room that gets dusty and needs to be dusted once a week. But he never required it or ordered that his children go weekly. In my book, I give many examples of people who were away for a long time, and show the differing ways Pio dealt with them.
DeletePersonally, I think weekly confession is a good practice, and even though I'm a horrible sinner who undergoes much temptation, I try to keep my confession under 2 minutes because by taking too much time I'd arguably be sinning against the people in the line outside who may need to be shriven so they can receive the Eucharist. Getting all the sins stated in a small time frame can be hard; but as with a lot of things practice makes perfect.
God bless you, Mary
Hello Mary, I heard your conversation with Tom Curran last week on Sound Insight. As a result, I bought an e-copy of your book. I was able to use an AI reader to listen to the book, but it was painful as each footnote stopped the flow of words with the voice calling out the number or Fr. being pronounced fir followed by a pause because of the period.
ReplyDeleteI think many more people could learn about this great saint of your book was available in audio. I would like to try and record a chapter of Padre Pio and You and send it to you. I have never done this before, but I am sure I could get a chapter to you in a week or two.
If this is something you would like to pursue, let me know.
Dear Patrick, Thank you so much for your comment - I'm delighted you both an e-copy of Padre Pio and You. I had a fabulous time talking to Tom Curran who lives in Idaho where he assures me they have delicious potatoes.
DeleteYour generosity is great indeed, but there is already an audiobook available via Audible, and if you go to Amazon you may find it there.
God bless you and please consider leaving a review of the book anywhere you wish, Mary
I found the book on Audible. I listened to a bit of it and found it difficult to understand. Read the comments on Audible. Let me know if you ever want to pursue a male voice for your book.
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