Today is the Feast of Pio of Pietrelcina, aka Padre Pio, and our resident expert Bret Thoman, author of many books about St. Francis of Assisi and owner of St. Francis Pilgrimages, calls in from his home in Loreto, Italy. He discusses the saint’s life and legacy with Gus, including the stigmata he bore on his wrists, which he received two months after his ordination in 1910 and had for the remainder of his life. Remarkably, when he died, the wounds had healed completely. He could also read souls in the confessional and bi-locate, and Bret provides some of the details on that and the mystical qualities of his life.
Also, Gus is joined by legendary St. Louis-area broadcaster turned motivational speaker and author, Zip Rzeppa, who shares his fascinating reversion story. Zip talks about how, for the early part of his career, he lived a fast-paced life in TV news, sports and entertainment, which all changed when he lost his job. Around the same time, his marriage engagement broke off and he hit rock bottom. It all changed when he met with a priest who told him he needed to go to mass every day, engage in contemplative prayer and holy reading, and to help him evangelize the Catholic faith in some of the worst parts of St. Louis. Zip details all of this in his memoir, “For a Greater Purpose: My Life Journey.” He also started Mater Media, a faith-based media organization that works in publishing and film-making for the purpose of evangelizing our culture.
Later, Gus recounts a conversation he had with a priest this past Saturday at the Eucharistic Encounter event about Charlie Kirk. He asked the priest whether or not he’s spoken about the Charlie Kirk assassination, and with a bit of frustration, he said he hadn’t. He’d heard from many parishioners who encouraged him to talk about it, as well as some who told him not to bring politics into mass. Gus asks listeners if their priests have mentioned this tragic event at mass.
Padre Pio, pray for us!
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