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Saint Pio and Saint Pope John Paul II’s friendship dated back to 1947 when the young Father Karol Wojtyla was engaged in doctoral studies at Rome’s Pontifical International Athenaeum Angelicum, the future Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas. He made a pilgrimage to the small town of San Giovanni Rotondo in southern Italy to meet Padre Pio and to have his confession heard by him. Father Karol Wojtyla spent nearly a week in San Giovanni Rotondo and had the opportunity to speak at length with Padre Pio, who called himself the “humble friar who prays.”

Saint Pio had a very special relationship with the military and veterans of both World War I and World War II. Saint Pio himself and other three friars of his community were selected for military service. At that time, Saint Pio was a teacher at the seminary and a spiritual director. On November 15, 1915, he was drafted into the Italian Army, and on December 6th he was assigned to the 10th Medical Corps in Naples.