Padre Pio exhumed, body is “well preserved”

[Michie]

ROME, Mar 3, 2008 / 02:15 pm (CNA).-

In the most discrete manner possible, the body of St. Padre Pio was exhumed at 12:30 a.m. Monday morning by a group of medical experts, while Church representatives observed.

Padre Pio was buried September 27, 1968 at the San Giovanni Rotondo shrine, just four days after he died.

"The body is well preserved" said Bishop Domenico D'Ambrosio of San Giovanni Rotondo-Manfredonia-Vieste, who observed the removal of the saint’s remains.

“From the very beginning (of the exhumation) you could clearly see his beard. The upper part of his skull is visible, but his chin is perfect and the rest of the body is well preserved. You can clearly see his knees, his hands, his mittens and his fingernails,” Bishop D’Ambrosio recalled.

The Italian bishop commented on the state of Padre Pio’s body by saying, "If Fr. Pio allows me to say, it is as if he was manicured.”

The Bishop also said that besides the upper skull, which shows some signs of the process of mummification, the rest of his remains are in surprisingly good condition, including his joints -which are all attached, and his feet.
D'Ambrosio confirmed that neither his feet nor hands showed any trace of the stigmata, since "as we know, they disappeared at the moment of his death."

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/new.php?n=11957

 

[Caritas3]

Thanks Michie.
I love Padre Pio.

St. Padre Pio pray for us!

 

[Caritas3]

D'Ambrosio confirmed that neither his feet nor hands showed any trace of the stigmata, since "as we know, they disappeared at the moment of his death."

 

[Cosmic Charlie]

Um, what was the point of this little peice of grave robbery ?

 

[geocajun]

kinda morbid

 

[Michie]

kinda morbid

I wish the RCC would lose this tradition. Science has pretty much explained the preservation of some of these bodies inside the Church & out. I really do not understand the purpose it serves in this day & age.

 

[Michie]

Um, what was the point of this little peice of grave robbery ?

Public viewing/veneration I believe.

 

[geocajun]

Are you familiar with the "Bone Church" ?

 

[Michie]

Yes I'm familiar with the Bone Church. Fascinating. I saw a documentary on it awhile back.

 

[ZuZu]

I've never heard of the Bone Church...where is it?

 

[Michie]

I've never heard of the Bone Church...where is it?

It's in the Czech Republic Karin.

Here is a link-
http://www.outsideprague.com/kutna_hora/bone_church.html

Btw- is that Larry King in your avatar? He looks freaky!

 

[ProCommunioneFacior]

kinda morbid

Not really.

 

[geocajun]

Not really.

yea really

 

[Michie]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica]Catholic News Service PHOTO[/FONT]

PADRE PIO
PADRE PIO
Archbishop Domenico D'Ambrosio blesses the body of St. Padre Pio during its exhumation in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, March 2. The body of the saint is to be conserved and put in a new glass coffin and will be displayed for public viewing beginning April 24. (CNS/Voce Di Padre Pio, Reuters)

 

[Michie]

Here is a better detailed explaination. Makes more sense.

SAN GIOVANNI ROTONDO, Italy (CNS) -- Almost 40 years after his death, the body of St. Padre Pio shows uneven signs of decay, but can be treated in a way that will make it possible to place the body on display for the veneration of the faithful, the local archbishop said. Archbishop Domenico D'Ambrosio, papal delegate for the saint's shrine in San Giovanni Rotondo, presided over the exhumation of the body in a service that began at 10 p.m. March 2 and ended more than two hours later. In a statement released March 3, the archbishop said the exhumation and subsequent procedures would guarantee the "prolonged preservation of the body of our saint to allow generations to come the possibility of venerating and safeguarding his relics." The statement said the body of the saint, who died Sept. 26, 1968, was in "fair condition." Padre Pio's remains have been moved to a room set up in the adjacent Capuchin convent where he lived for many years. Technicians will use chemicals to prepare the body for long-term preservation. The body will be placed in a new glass coffin and is scheduled to be in place for public viewing beginning April 24.

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20080303.htm#head7

 

[FullyMT]

When did we start adding "preservatives" to peoples bodies after death? I'm not sure what constitutes an incorruptible body anymore (actually, I don't know if I ever did).

 

[ZuZu]

It's in the Czech Republic Karin.

Here is a link-
http://www.outsideprague.com/kutna_hora/bone_church.html

Btw- is that Larry King in your avatar? He looks freaky!

thanks Michie..I'll look it up! Yes that's Larry having a wind blown comb over...I think that pic is hysterical!

 

[Tigg]

So sad to me. If ya didn't see Father Pio in life, why dig him up? Public viewing...yuck. One of the pit falls of being a Saint. If you want to lie in peace in death, sorry. The Church owns you. Worse than being in the Army. You can't object to anything cause that isn't being Obedient. A sure one way ticket to not being a Saint. I guess I can pray for Father Pio. Altho I think those who dug him up need more prayers. As an aside, adding chemicals makes the claim of incorruptibility zero. But then to me, it is the way one lives his/her life that truly counts.

 

[QuantaCura]

The spirit is separated from the body--he's not being bothered by this. We are venerating an instrument used by God for much good. Plus, St. Pio, especially seeing God face to face, I'm sure would suffer anything if it lifted men's hearts to God and virtue. Like St. Therese, I'm sure any saint would love to spend their Heaven doing good on earth

 

[benedictaoo]

Public viewing/veneration I believe.

Not just that, it's to show us that if the body is this beautiful after death, imagine what the soul is.

It's to show the glory of the resurrection.. it's to show us lots of things.

Praised be God. Thanks be to God that he gives us this hope. Shows us what it is if we too follow in the way of the saints which is that the kingdom of heaven is now... that we can share in his life now, not merely when we get to heaven.

The incorruptibles show us that.

And there is nothing morbid about death if you are in Christ.