25/05/2026
Did you know that St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina was born on the Feast of the Discovery of the Holy Relics of St. Philomena, May 25!
For Padre Pio, St. Philomena was the “Princess of Heaven”. His devotion for the Saint began within his family, where his sister was given her name. The devotion was strengthened at his novitiate place in Morcone, where at the end of July, the feast of St. Philomena was celebrated with great solemnity. This feast is continuing today in the Convent of San Giovanni Rotondo (Foggia) in the Capital of the Cappuccini where the Saint was highly venerated. After the liturgical reform of 1961, Padre Pio used to imperatively reply to whoever dared to doubt the existence of the Saint: “For the love of God! It might well be that her name is not Philomena!, but this Saint has performed many miracles and it is not the name that did them”. This is the wisest reply: who wants to understand, will understand! Padre Pio once said: “St. Philomena is in Paradise, the confusion is the work of Satan.”
Like St. John Mary Vianney, Padre Pio is a devotee and a great defender of St. Philomena.