Padre Pio assistant who shared stories of the saint dies at 85
Aleteia
Padre Pio died on September 23, 1968, and as time passes by, fewer and fewer people are left who personally knew the holy friar or who worked with him before his death.
Capuchin friar Fr. John Aurilia was one of those individuals, but has now passed from this life to the next. He died on January 13, 2026, at the St. Francis of Assisi Friary in Wilmington, Delaware, where he had been living for many years.
Assistant to St. Padre Pio
Ordained a priest for the Capuchin Franciscans in 1966, Fr. John worked at San Giovanni Rotondo with Padre Pio in 1967, only a year before he died.
While he may not have had years of contact with the saint, Fr. John was privileged to witness the remarkable sanctity of a modern-day mystic.
He recounted many of his stories in a final interview given on September 24, 2025, to the Catholic Diocese of Wilmington podcast.
It is a rare glimpse into one of the most popular modern saints in the Catholic Church.
Fr. John shared in the interview how St. Padre Pio was “one of us, but different than us.” He explained how the saint would “crack jokes” and was very “meek and humble.” Fr. John even said that he believed St. Padre Pio wasn’t a great speaker. Even when he chanted the Mass, Fr. John said, the saint’s musical talents weren’t that great.
At the same time, St. Padre Pio was “extraordinary,” as he was famous around the world, even though he never left his monastery. This was due in large part to his mystical holiness that astounded everyone who encountered him.
Fr. John shared a few stories in the interview of when he talked with St. Padre Pio, such as when he was about to present to him a letter, but he already knew what was in the letter without reading it.
Yet, while there were many miraculous things that happened in his life, Fr. John said one of the greatest things that summarizes St. Padre Pio’s life is how he would say that all he wanted to be was a “Poor friar who prays.” He didn’t want any fame or attention, but just to pray with God.
Fr. John also authored a book, Dearest Soul: A Spiritual Journey with Padre Pio, that was published by Our Sunday Visitor in 2024.
After Fr. John spent time with Padre Pio, he then was sent to the United States to minister to Italian-speaking immigrants in New Jersey.
While he is no longer with us on this earth, his stories have been captured and we can continue to be inspired by him and his association with a saint.
