» Padre Pio: The True Story

Padre Pio: The True Story Reviews

Customer Rating:
Summary: Thorough, honest, insightful and uplifting
Comment: This is an honest and insightful biography of one of the greatest saints of the 20th century, giving a well rounded picture of both the friar and his environs. His character, his holiness, his mysticism and many other aspects of his life are clearly conveyed. A must for anyone interested in the lives of the saints and highly recommended for all, Christians and non-christians alike - a testament to the true nature of the Catholic faith (albeit written by a protestant), but never didactic or 'preachy.'

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Hope filled and unsensational....a real story
Comment: Although not religious, I do believe in prayer. I listened to this book on tape and loved it. Catholics, people on a spritual journey, or anyone interested in the power of prayer, Saints or Miracle Workers will find this a good read.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: fasinating
Comment: i had over the years heard a lot about padre pio, but not knowing in depth his journey. the suject of stigmata i think draws a lot of people in to think about religion, sometimes in certain so called horror films not in the right way. this to me is another fasinating subject which in myself brings me closer to my faith. even if you are not religious in any way, but caurious about life and subjects in general this is a great read within its self. i had hoped for some colour within the book to make it really come alive, but overall i would highly recommed this read.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: Don't let the Protestant author fool you
Comment: This is the most Catholic and scholarly biography of Padre Pio to date. Yes, the author on one or two occasions gives some personal reflections of his own from a Protestant perspective. But the other 99% of the book is a thorough and unbiased account of Padre Pio's life, using only verifiable facts, with references and footnotes. The strength of this biography is that it is not sensational like other biographies of Padre Pio. His life is dramatic enough; it does not need to be stylized and watered down to a human level. The facts of his life stand on their own.

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Customer Rating:
Summary: A Very Balanced Story
Comment: I've read several books about Padre Pio and was somewhat skeptical about this one because the author is a Lutheran minister. Perhaps that's why C. Bernard Ruffin took such pains to provide a well-documented and balanced approach to the tale of this great saint. Other books, written by Catholics, failed to tell the whole story of the Church's persecution of Pio. Ruffin lays it all out and it is astonishing! Pio's detractors were priests who were jealous of him and an archbishop who had a history of rewarding priests convicted of child molestation, selling church artifacts for personal profit, and questionable sex practices. When the truth was finally revealed, punishment was light. The archbishop was allowed to retire early with all benefits and a few wrists were slapped. But if Padre Pio had had his way they would have been forgiven totally.
No matter how badly he suffered through this time, he never said anything to harm his "Mother Church" and he remained in complete obedience to Church authority. In fact he would be sad that I am pointing out the character of his detractors. Sorry, Padre.
All in all this is a book I couldn't put down. Several pages of photos, including one of his parents, makes the book a good read.

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