Apr 26, 2008 / 13:01 pm
Thousands of devotees of the Italian mystic St. Padre Pio gathered at his shrine to see his exhumed body, which is on display for the first time since his death nearly 40 years ago.
More than one million people are expected to view his corpse, which is displayed in a transparent casket, between now and September 2009, according to Agence France Presse.
On Thursday more than 15,000 people viewed the saint’s body and also attended a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, head of the Vatican’s Congregation for Saints.
Cardinal Martins said in his homily, “What we see is a dead body, no longer animated by the breath of God. But Padre Pio is not simply a corpse: he lives on in communion with Jesus resurrected.” The cardinal also called Padre Pio a “saint of the people.”