flying monk of Pomigliano

Padre Pio (Francesco Forgione, 1887–1968) was a Capuchin friar from Pietrelcina, near Benevento. He spent most of his life at the friary of San Giovanni Rotondo on the Gargano. From 1918 he bore wounds in his hands, feet and side like those of Christ. The Church investigated him repeatedly and at times restricted his ministry, but popular devotion grew regardless. Stories multiplied of healings, of reading penitents’ consciences, and of bilocation: being seen in two places at once.

The war added its own legends. The best known says Allied bomber crews over the Gargano saw a friar in the sky waving them back. It is retold to this day, though there is no documentary evidence for it. Lewis’s footnote ties the Pomigliano “flying monk” to Padre Pio, although Padre Pio himself lived on the far side of Italy. The identification may reflect how his name attracted miracle stories from all over the South. He was canonised in 2002.