“Padre Pio Glimpse into the Miraculous” by Pascal Cataneo
A six-month-old baby was in a state of bad health that brought him close to death. The poor mother who had great faith, though she might save the baby by taking him to Padre Pio so that he might intercede with God for a cure.
It was a long distance to travel but, full of courage, she took the train. During the journey, due either to the child’s serious condition or the rigors of travel, the baby died. The desolate mother wrapped the body in some clothes and put it in a fiber suitcase.
On arrival at the church she ran up the steps and, suitcase in hand, took her place in the line of women waiting for confession. When her turn came, she threw herself at Padre Pio’s feet and, crying pitifully, opened the suitcase.
Dr. Sanguinetti, a convert and Padre Pio’s right-hand man at the Casa Sollievo della Sofferenza, was present at this incident. He realized immediately that, even if the baby had not died of the illness, he most certainly would have died of suffocation, being closed in the suitcase for so long. At the sight of the dead infant Padre Pio paled and was gripped by emotion. He raised his eyes to heaven, prayed for a few moments, and then turned abruptly to the mother saying, “Why are you crying so loud? Can’t you see that your son is sleeping?”
It was true! The baby was now sleeping peacefully. The happiness of this mother was beyond description, as were her cries of great joy and those of everyone who witnessed what had happened.
Padre Pio Prayer Group of Denver 