Father Bill Kneemiller has received permission from Bishop Martin Amos to start a Padre Pio Prayer Group in the Iowa City area. The emphasis of this prayer group will be to bring together Catholic medical professionals and Catholics who are active in the healing ministry. Padre Pio believed that science and faith complemented one another; to this end he founded a hospital that serves 60,000 people a year.
The prayer group’s first meeting will be after the 6 p.m. Mass May 26 at St Joseph Church in Hills. Please RSVP for the meal being provided: (319) 679-2271. Plans are for the group to meet twice a year.
In response to Pope Pius XII’s request for more prayer and penance, Padre Pio encouraged groups to meet monthly under the direction of a priest to thank God for the graces they have received, to adore God for his goodness and mercy, to offer prayers of expiation of their own sins and the sins of the whole world and make reparation through participation in the suffering of Christ, especially by participation in liturgical and sacramental life.
The United States has 70 official Padre Pio Prayer Groups registered with the Holy See.
A group of like-minded U.S. doctors, members of Catholic Healthcare International, have teamed up to bring Padre Pio’s Hospital to America. The first small clinic called the “Home for the Relief of Suffering,” was founded in rural eastern Kentucky in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.
