Padre Pio, humble peasant and world-famous recipient of the stigmata, spoke simple words of Christian encouragement and inspiration to all who approached him seeking counsel. Born Francesco Forgione on May 25, 1887, at Pietrelcino in south-eastern Italy, Padre Pio joined the Capuchin Order in 1903 and was ordained a Roman Catholic priest in 1910. On September 20, 1918, he received the sacred wounds of Christ, which medical science could not explain and which he bore for the rest of his life. Padre Pio died in 1968 and was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1999.