A Humble Friar's Perfume

Short Summary: Padre Pio's stigmata emits a sweet aroma.

Details

Location: San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy

Year: 1968

Prayer: nan

Verse: nan

Full Story

One type of less discussed (yet somewhat common) miracle is the sudden presence of a sweet aroma. This has been associated with the presence of angels and saints, not least of which is Padre Pio. This was first recorded in connection with the Italian friar in 1919. Doctors initially believed he was wearing a pleasant perfume, which indeed would be odd for any priest to do. They soon determined it was coming from the blood of his stigmata (the mystically originated crucifixion wounds in his hands and feet). Dr. Romanelli states, “It is impossible for blood to have a sweet odor, but the blood that drips from the stigmata of Padre Pio has a characteristic scent, which even people with no sense of smell can detect. Besides, when the blood is coagulated or dried on some garment that he has worn, it still retains its perfume. This is contrary to all natural properties of blood, and yet many people have experienced it and still do experience it.” Another physician, Dr. Festa, described the blood as having “a special perfume, fine and delicate, that many people who have approached him have distinctly noticed. Padre Pio never used any kind of perfume.” After one of his visits, he brought a blood-stained cloth back to Rome with him, which he kept within a case in a closet. “It filled the whole room with perfume, so much so that patients who came to consult me continually asked me how to explain it.” He concluded that the “phenomenon is contrary to every natural and scientific law… but in all honesty we cannot deny the reality of its existence.” Several other doctors across the decades produced similar reports. There are also numerous testimonies from people who experienced miraculous healings related to Padre Pio, in which the wonderful aroma accompanied the miracle, or preceded it in some way. These cases continued to occur well after the friar’s death in 1968.

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