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Manny Martinez wrote:

Dear Catholic Church:

I have been a good Catholic all my life. My question is this: I have heard that God sometimes blesses some worthy Catholics with a miracle called the stigmata.

  • Does the Catholic Church acknowledge the existence of stigmata or is it a hoax perpetrated by people who just want attention?

Please respond, I am sincerely interested in the subject!

Respectfully submitted,

Manny
P.S. I graduated from Saint Viators Catholic School in 1970 and Bishop Gorman High School
in Las Vegas in 1975.
  { Does the Catholic Church acknowledge the existence of the stigmata or is it a hoax? }

Eric replied:

Hi Manny,

Thanks for your e-mail. We can't claim to be the Catholic Church or speak for the Catholic Church, but we are knowledgeable people who can answer questions.

The Catholic Church acknowledges the reality of stigmata — several saints, including St. Francis and St. Pio, had them. St. Pio died around 1969 so that's well within living memory with eyewitnesses still around.

That said, Catholics are not obliged to believe that this phenomenon is authentic. It's basically a matter of private revelation.

There is an article in the Catholic Encyclopedia on this subject you may find enlightening:

Eric
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