Padre Pio in the Garden

It’s been said that we don’t choose our patron saints—they choose us. This is certainly the case with St. Padre Pio, who seems to have planted himself as a spiritual father to all the Roses in Hope’s Garden.

Padre Pio was known as a great father to all who came to him for consolation and guidance, but particularly to his beloved spiritual daughters. He loved his daughters with a special affection, piously adopting them and taking them wholly under his wings and into his heart.

For quite some time now, St. Padre Pio has been making his presence known in Hope’s Garden. During group meetings, individual conversations and shared videos, he keeps coming up again and again. When a saint makes his presence known as strongly as Padre Pio has lately been doing, it’s time to pay attention to the love and guidance he’s eager to bring us all.

Yet what does that mean for us? As I was praying over that question, Padre Pio’s personal sufferings came into my heart—in particular the slander and persecutions he experienced at the hands of those he loved, those he had once trusted.

Betrayal, Slander and Persecution
St. Padre Pio was no stranger to being painfully betrayed by close friends and trusted superiors. From 1931 until 1933, he underwent necessary scrutiny in order to determine if his mystical graces were real. However, due to the jealousy of certain prelates and others in authority, that understandable inquiry turned into harsh and unjust persecution. Many of the local clergy in his area resented the stream of pilgrims that were seeking out the guidance of Padre Pio—and who were financially contributing to his friary rather than their churches. The slander and biases Padre Pio endured during this time were a grave trial to his soul, but one he willingly accepted in
accordance with God’s will. He realized that God only permits trials and tribulations to help us become holy, so he submitted to whatever God allowed in the present moment.

A new wave of abuse, slander and persecution hit him toward the end of his life, beginning around 1960. For many years, the elderly and frail Padre Pio was blasted with accusations of sexual impropriety, financial abuse, and more. All of these accusations stemmed from people wanting to take over the sacred ministry he’d established, to discredit him in order to control his popularity and spiritual influence.

Through it all, Padre Pio remained steadfast in his truth. That’s not to say he wasn’t deeply grieved by the betrayals—he even admitted to his superior, Fr. Bernardo:  “My spirit has felt alone—totally alone.” He felt abandoned by everyone—including Jesus.

Betrayal hurts, slander is excruciating, and the venom of a loved one stings far more than accusations from enemies. Yet in the end, God’s truth always triumphs. As he once he wrote to his spiritual daughters:

“The most beautiful Credo is the one we pronounce when we are in darkness, in the hour of sacrifice and sorrow, in the supreme effort of an inflexible will for what is good. This is the one that as a flash of lightning breaks the darkness of the soul; the one that in the midst of a raging storm lifts up the soul and leads it to God … The prayers of the saints in heaven and of good souls here on earth are a perfume which is never lost. Take care that the sad spectacle of human injustice may not disturb your soul, for this, too, has its place in the general economy. It is upon this human injustice that one day we shall see the Justice of God rise infallibly in triumph.”

In the end, those who falsely accused Padre Pio of horrific deeds were exposed as liars, their tactics revealed to be self-serving and false. Through it all, despite the suffering and hardship, Padre Pio remained true to his vocation—to comfort souls, to pray for their needs, and to use his suffering as a catalyst for the healing of others.

Our kindly Capuchin monk from Italy has joined Hope’s Garden for a reason. I truly believe he has adopted us all, and we are now his spiritual daughters. He walks with us in our grief and comforts us in our betrayals—and in so doing he brings us consolation and powerful saintly intercession.

Never tire of turning to Padre Pio for help. He is your spiritual father. All you have to do is ask, and he will guide and console you—he’s eager to intercede for your soul. The words he wrote to one of his spiritual daughters applies equally to us all:

“Do not worry about taking my time, because we cannot spend our time in a better manner than in leading souls to sanctity. I myself do not know how to thank our Heavenly Father for His kindness in bringing me souls whom I can help a little.”

And you are one of those souls!

“May Jesus rule in your heart, and fill it to overflowing with His holy love.”

(Quotes from Padre Pio’s letters are taken from Pascal P. Parente, A City on A Mountain: Padre Pio of Peitrelcina.)

Jenny duBay, Copyright 2026