Everybody who met Padre Pio seemed convinced that he had a
direct connection with the afterlife,
and asked about a dead relative or friend. It was fascinating there was always an answer.
Gerardo De Caro had long conversations with Padre Pio in 1943.
In his written notes he testifies:
"Padre Pio had an exact knowledge of
the state of a soul after death, including the duration of the pain until
reached total purification."
She went to Padre Pio in October 1967 asking if her
father, a devout Jew, was saved. "Julius Fine is saved,
but we need to pray a lot for him."
One night in 1944 the friars heard loud voices coming from
downstairs saying "Viva Padre Pio". The superior Padre Raffaele da S. Elia a
Pianisi told the doorkeeper
Fra Gerardo da Deliceto to let those people out and lock the
door properly. Fra Gerardo went downstairs, didn't find anybody, and the door
was double locked as it was supposed to.
He went back to report. Padre Raffaele was puzzled and went
straight to Padre Pio asking if he knew something.
"Oh! Those were soldiers who had died on the battleground,
and came to thank me for their salvation."
In 1945 Fra' Modestino asked Padre Pio a comparison between a
fire on hearth and the flames of Purgatory. "They compare
like fresh water and boiling water."
One day Padre told his doctor: "I'm
praying for the good death of my great-great grandfather". But he died
more than one hundred years ago!"
"Remember that for God there is no past and no future, and
everything is present. So God made use at that time of the prayers I'm saying
now."
In 1922 Bishop Alberto Costa asked Padre Pio if he had ever
seen a soul in Purgatory. "I have seen so many of them
that they don't scare me anymore."