The National Shrine of St. Padre Pio in Sto. Tomas, Batangas has been officially declared an international shrine.

Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines president and Lipa Archbishop Gilbert Garcera led the declaration on Wednesday, 23 September.

“Our hearts are filled with thanksgiving as we witness a moment of profound ecclesial significance, the official declaration of this Shrine of Padre Pio as an international shrine,” Garcera said.

The archbishop said devotion to Padre Pio has grown beyond Batangas and the Philippines, with pilgrims from across Asia visiting the 17-hectare sanctuary.

“The elevation of this shrine is not merely an honor bestowed upon a particular church,” Garcera said.

“It is a recognition of spiritual significance of this place, of the devotion to Padre Pio that has spread beyond the boundaries of Batangas, the Archdiocese of Lipa, throughout the Philippines, and across Asia,” he added.

Under canon law, the designation of an international shrine requires approval from the Holy See.

Garcera said the process began in 2022 when the shrine’s director sought recognition of the site as an Asian shrine.

Following an ecclesiastical process and endorsements from church officials, the petition reached the Vatican’s Dicastery for Evangelization.

The dicastery issued a decree on 25 May, Padre Pio’s 139th birth anniversary, formalizing the shrine’s spiritual bond with the Sanctuary of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina in San Giovanni Rotondo, Italy, where the Capuchin friar lived and is buried.

Padre Pio died in 1968 at the age of 81 and was known for bearing the stigmata. He was canonized by Pope John Paul II on 16 June 2002.