Customer Reviews

Padre Pio: The True Story

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a very factual, down-to-earth, well-researched and enjoyable biography of our new Saint, Padre Pio. The author goes to great lengths to examine and sort out all the claims made about Padre Pio in a fair-minded, nonjudgmental manner. And the most wonderful thing about Padre Pio turns out to be not just the miracles and the wonders that he performed, but his great love and devotion for Christ. Not to mention his great (and underrated) sense of humor! A terrific book which I've already read twice!

Though at times, Ruffin is repetitive you walk away from this book with a glimpse of a true saint. You are given the good and the bad side of Padre Pio; how the Lord uses both in building up the Body of Christ...this book will stir you emotionally; witnessing the power of Christ in the 20th century.

I approached this book with some hesitation, given its length and the conroversial nature of its subject. Having read other lives of saints that lacked critical perspective about sources, I was wary of this one at first. All of my doubts were dispelled by the abundance of carefully assembled evidence in this volume. Pio is a saint for all of us, as this book makes clear. You will learn much about the spiritual world here, and gain some valuable lessons about the limitations of more "worldly" perspectives than those of Pio. Your life will permanently change for the better as a result.

I just finished reading this book. Most of it was very well done, but the author who is non-Catholic had a bad habit of inserting irrelevant material relating to Martin Luther and other Protestant luminaries in order somehow to bridge the chasm between the holiness of St. Padre Pio and the religious experience of these other individuals. It all has the smell of an ecumenistic work, a suspicion given added weight by the liberal nature of the publishing company. St. Padre Pio was a great saint for modern times. Like all saints he loved all humanity, but his personal love for souls did not, in any way, include acceptance of the errors they espouse. It is inexplicable that this author, who apparently believes what he has written about the saint, did not at the end adjure the errors of Lutheranism and enter the Catholic fold.

This is a book that changes how one thinks about spiritual things completely. As "moderns" we find it easy to believe in "spiritual" things, but we easily divorce that from religion. When one reads this book, one's eyes are open to the true depth of spirituality and traditional Christianity. The author is not a brilliant writer, but his prose and research are exactly what is needed to tell Padre Pio's story in a straighforward and truthful manner.

Yes, this book brought me back from being a "modern spiritual" person, to being a practicing Catholic again.

Read it! You will be amazed!

this is a very insightful book about one of the greatest holy men of our times. the trials he was put through not only through his suffering of the stigmata but also by the very church that he was honored to serve as a priest. at times the book was very somber and at other times it had me rolling in my seat laughing until tears started to form. he is the only priest that i've ever heard of that had groupies....it is enjoyable from cover to cover.

From the Lutheran wing of Christianity comes this priest of the "Father Brown" caliber, relentlessly tracking down every aspect and detail of a life so huge and mystical it's almost ungatherable! A complete and completely objective narrative of one of the greatest saints of the century, perhaps Christendom. It's the book you'll reach for first and can trust when searching for a Pio fact. And Pio emerges everlastingly real! A must for Padre Pio seekers!

Scholarly, but not dull. The book reminded me of something you may be assigned in a college history class. Not many details are left out and, thus, not the easiest book to get through; still, Ruffin manages to keep the flow going. Also, the subject matter itself makes you want to continue. Well worth it when you finish. A non-Catholic wrote this book. Shows the profound effect Padre Pio has had on spiritual thinkers. Straightforward, scholarly writing is hard to come by, but Ruffin manages, on most levels, to accomplish just that. If you're really interested in Padre Pio, you should read this book.

Ruffin gives a very complete picture of Padre Pio's life. It is an amazing story of the mystic priest whose life will put you in awe of his holiness and humble spirit. One cannot help by being moved and inspired to deepen your own spiritually.

Very readable, excellent research, gives a true feel for the personality of this wonderful man.