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CNN Saturday Morning News

Padre Pio To Be Elevated Into Sainthood Tomorrow

Aired June 15, 2002 - 09:05   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: As the Catholic Church addresses the sex abuse scandal, it's preparing for one of its most celebrated events ever. Tomorrow Padre Pio, one of the church's most distinguished monks, will be elevated into sainthood. A half-million Catholics are expected to attend the ceremony at the Vatican.

Our Rome bureau chief Alessio Vinci has a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): When he was alive, Padre Pio is said to have had the power to be in different places at the same time. He was treated by millions as a saint who had miraculous healing powers.

He bore the stigmata, the wounds of Jesus Christ, which made him one of the most popular religious figures of the Italian Catholic Church.

BOB KAISER, VATICAN ANALYST: There's something quintessentially Italian about this guy. He was warm, he was loving, he was everywhere.

VINCI: The Italian fascination with Padre Pio continued after his death in 1968. The story of his life, miracles, and prayers is told in dozens of books. Millions of pilgrims visit his shrine every year. There is a radio and television station named after him. On the Internet there are several official Padre Pio Web sites. And in souvenir shops near the Vatican, his badges, statues, and pictures are hot sellers.

Millions of Italians, like this woman, who just bought a Padre Pio watch for her mother-in-law, still believe in his healing powers.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE And the mother of my husband was ill, and so we organized a trip. We went to the church dedicated to Padre Pio in Pietrelcina. And after this, the condition was really better, compared to the provision of the doctors.

VINCI: Pope John Paul II beatified Padre Pio in 1999 in front of 200,000 people, even though the Catholic Church viewed him with some suspicion when he was alive.

FLORIO ALESSANDRO TESSARI, GENERAL POSTULATOR: (speaking in Italian)

VINCI: Initially, the stigmata had caused criticism, he says, so the church prudently wanted to see clearly before moving forward with the process of beatification.

Journalist and writer Igor Man met Padre Pio in 1949 while on assignment. He says the stigmata were real, because he felt them himself as Padre Pio took his hand and blessed him.

IGOR MAN, WRITER: At this moment, (UNINTELLIGIBLE) something miraculous, I don't know, mystics or (UNINTELLIGIBLE), I don't know. Because my finger, this one, medium, go inside his hands. And I was astonished, I was shocked.

VINCI (on camera): The Vatican never officially recognized Padre Pio as having received the stigmata. An independent commission is working full time searching for proof. But if they succeed, Padre Pio will become the first priest and only the fourth case ever sanctioned by the Vatican.

Alessio Vinci, CNN, Rome.

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