Miracle of Padre Pio and the Deacon

Meet Father Luis Diaz

I adopted Padre Pio as my patron saint – before I knew he was so famous and everyone asks him to be their patron – and for awhile, miraculous things surrounded Padre Pio. I always seemed to come into contact with Padre Pio relics – and once, during confession, a priest passed on a blessing that his father had given him, that Padre Pio had given his father - But the greatest miracle that surrounded Padre Pio involved a young deacon in the Dominican Republic. 

During my stay as a teacher, I always wore a very special Padre Pio relic that had been given to me by my Search Retreat Dad. I never took it off for any reason, it was so special to me. One day, while at lunch, Deacon Luis, one of my students approached me and said, very directly, 

“Tori, I wants to wear your necklace.  I have it, please?”

Not wanting to take it off – it was my favorite sacred object – I hesitated. “A... porque lo necesito?” Why do you need it? 

He immediately points to his neck and proceeds to tell me in Spanglish of how there is a lump on his neck and to remove it he must have surgery. “I have very scare about operation.” He motions with his hands how the doctor had told him how the operation would take place and how in removing the growth there was a risk that he would no longer be able to sing. Also, surgery was expensive and the hospitals were on strike that July. If you turned on the news that summer you would see long lines of sick and injured people awaiting entrance to a hospital that refused to service them.

In my head I ran through the arguments. I shouldn’t be so attached to the things of this world – but It’s my favorite necklace  - but I can’t take it with me when I die – but it brings me such comfort to wear it – but what if deacon needs it? So, very hesitantly, reluctantly, I took off my relic of St. Padre Pio and gave it to deacon Luis. With a big smile he put it around his neck and said ‘thank you! Thank you!’ before running off to get into some mischief with the other seminarians.

That weekend the priests went on mission out in the country and Señora Tucker and I were invited to spend the weekend at the Bishop's home.

When classes began on Monday morning, deacon wasn’t there on time.  I wondered where he was and if his absence had anything to do with the growth on his neck. Just in time for lunch, ironic because deacon loves to eat, Luis walks in and with his signature smile, struts over to me and says, ‘teacher, tori! Mira!’ Look! He repeatedly taps his necks. I tilt my head to the side trying to see what he is pointing at. He stands up tall, with his neck tilted sideways so that I can see a normal, healthy, straight neck. And then it hits me, ‘The..the..’ I couldn’t think of the word in Spanish and began to tap my own neck. “Si. Si.” Yes Yes he encourages.

 Puffing his chest and making a motion like wiping dust off his shoulder he says matter-o-factly, “Padre Pio.” 

Stunned, I smiled – amazed – a miracle – over the weekend, he had been healed.

“You want back now?” he says making a motion to take the necklace off and give it back to me,

“No,” I replied, “For you. Keep.”