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Padre Pio, Italy's most-loved saint,
faked his stigmata by pouring carbolic acid on his hands,
according to a new book.
The Other Christ: Padre
Pio and 19th Century Italy, by the historian Sergio Luzzatto,
draws on a document found in the Vatican's archive. The
document reveals the testimony of a pharmacist who said that
the young Padre Pio bought four grams of carbolic acid in
1919. "I was an admirer of Padre Pio and I met him for the
first time on 31 July 1919," wrote Maria De Vito.
She claimed to have spent a month with the priest in the
southern town of San Giovanni Rotondo, seeing him often.
"Padre Pio called me to him in complete secrecy and telling
me not to tell his fellow brothers, he gave me personally an
empty bottle, and asked if I would act as a chauffeur to
transport it back from Foggia to San Giovanni Rotondo with
four grams of pure carbolic acid. "He explained that the
acid was for disinfecting syringes for injections. He also
asked for other things, such as Valda pastilles." The
testimony was originally presented to the Vatican by the
Archbishop of Manfredonia, Pasquale Gagliardi, as proof that
Padre Pio caused his own stigmata with acid. It was examined
by the Holy See during the beatification process of Padre
Pio and apparently dismissed. Padre Pio, whose real name was
Francesco Forgione, died in 1968. He was made a saint in
2002. A recent survey in Italy showed that more people
prayed to him than to Jesus or the Virgin Mary. He exhibited
stigmata throughout his life, starting in 1911. The new
allegations were greeted with an instant dismissal from his
supporters. The Catholic Anti-Defamation League said Mr
Luzzatto was a liar and was "spreading anti-Catholic
libels". Pietro Siffi, the president of the League, said:
"We would like to remind Mr Luzzatto that according to
Catholic doctrine, canonisation carries with it papal
infallibility. "We would like to suggest to Mr Luzzatto that
he dedicates his energies to studying religion properly."
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