Sept . 23 , 2013 is the feast day of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina and this testimony is written in behalf of my younger brother William who wanted the whole world to know how grateful he is for St. Pio’s numerous spiritual interventions in his struggle to have a closer relationship with God, Christ Jesus, the Risen Christ.

Saint Pio of Pietrelcina in William’s Life

AMDG September 23, 2013
Nellie Sonido Feng



Sept . 23 , 2013 is the feast day of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina and this testimony is written in behalf of my younger brother William who wanted the whole world to know how grateful he is for St. Pio’s numerous spiritual interventions in his struggle to have a closer relationship with God, Christ Jesus, the Risen Christ.

It was Sept.22, 2013 Sunday 7P.M. Philippine time, when my younger brother William called up. He was in high spirits and could not wait for his usual Wednesday evening call to keep me abreast about his life and for our weekly prayer through the telephone lines.

William wanted to talk about St. Pio of Pietrelcina. He wanted me to know how just a few days away from his feastday (Sept.23 ) , St. Pio had once again manifested his concrete intervention in his life.

In the 1990s, William came to know about this holy Capuchin priest of San Giovanni rotondo through a book on his life as the first stigmatized priest in the history of the Catholic church . It was my spiritual director Fr. Regis Wan SJ who introduced me to Padre Pio’s life story. I sent the book about Padre Pio to my younger sister Teresita telling her to read it first and then to let William read it also. I was hoping that it would inspire him to believe that God is indeed real . Teresita and I stormed the high heavens in prayer to let William be moved by the true story of Padre Pio’s humility, obedience , deep devotion to the Holy Eucharist and the Madonna and the rosary and the undisputable miracles that resulted (and documented) through his prayerful intervention. Fervently, we petitioned God that the appearance of the five wounds of our Lord’s Passion on Padre Pio on September 20, 1918 until his death on September 23, 1968 would touch my brother to set his life aright in the eyes of God. You see, he was not a peaceful person when he gets drunk. Even then , I already felt a strong affinity to Padre Pio because his birthday, May 25, was the same as my mother’s. My mother who passed away in 1970 when I was 12 and William was 9 and Teresita was 7 and Antonio was 6.

And true enough, on that fateful year of 1990, God’s grace and mercy flowed… way before St.Pio was canonized a saint on June 16, 2002, Padre Pio manifested his assurance of heavenly intervention to my brother William by letting William experience a whiff of heavenly fragrance while reading the book about his life. That single instance left a deep impact on William. He asked for God’s help to release him from dependency and the fragrance assured him of Padre Pio’s presence. William’s faith in the real existence of God took root. Up to this day, he could not explain why he did not suffer any adverse withdrawal syndrome at all. Though he still have to struggle in avoiding too much liquor to drink , he was not as problematic as before. No longer would my phone ring in the wee hours of night bearing alarming news from Teresita or Antonio about William’s latest trouble. William would never tire reminiscing God’s goodness to him.

As time goes by, our weekly phone call and prayer online was our way of reminding him of his choice to be close to God through clean living and opting always for good choices. William always remembered to invoke Padre Pio’s intervention in all his endeavors, he was very happy when Padre Pio finally became St. Pio on June 16, 2002.

Going back to William’s Sunday phone call, he could not wait to tell me that St. Pio’s generosity really knows no bounds. He said he told me the good news first. He will be telling Teresita and Antonio later.

In my native place somewhere in Panay island, we now have a shrine of St. Pio of Pietrelcina which was crafted entirely out of bamboo and native materials. I was able to visit the shrine last December 2012 . When I was praying holding the glass encasing St. Pio’s life size image, I felt the warm energy coming from St.Pio’s statue , a sure manifestation of his presence. On a separate occasion, Teresita herself experienced the fragrance of flowers when she was praying in front of the same St. Pio image. We, as his spiritual children, felt so blessed to be gifted with his assurance.

With September 23 fast approaching, the people are busy preparing for Padre Pio’s feast day . My younger sister Teresita was helping in the solicitation of the food for a simple feast for the shrine and she asked William to offer a pair of grown ducks as thanksgiving . William, who now has a backyard duck farm of more than 70 ducks, pledged not two but four ducks. On the very day before Teresita was able to collect all four ducks, our youngest brother Antonio came by to help his office mate buy two ducks from William. Right after Teresita got the four donated ducks, another person went to buy two more ducks from him. William was in awe how St. Pio was so generous to send him buyers of his ducks.

Now William was worried that the stall he was renting out will have no new tenant, because the old one moved out that day. He silently prayed to God and invoked Mother Mary’s assistance . He also remembered asking help from his favorite saint and champion St. Pio whose feast day is coming soon . Lo, and behold, before the day was over, another interested tenant sealed
the deal with William!

To William , this is St. Pio’s continuing assurance that he is never away from his spiritual children. As always, all for the greater glory of God!!!

For those who felt the yearning to commune with this holy saint,
below is a short prayer to St.Pio of Pietrelcina :

O, God, You gave Saint Pio of Pietrelcina ,
Capuchin priest,
the great privilege of participating in a unique way
in the passion of Your Son,
grant me through his intercession
the grace of (…………) which I ardently desire;
and above all grant me the grace
of living in conformity with the death of Jesus,
to arrive at the glory of the resurrection.

Glory be to the Father …. ( three times)