PGMN Anchor and Former Batangas Vice Governor Mark Leviste joined devotees in Santo Tomas City, Batangas on September 23 for the Feast Day of St. Padre Pio, which coincided with the scheduled solemn declaration of the International Shrine and Parish of St. Padre Pio.
Leviste shared photos from the pilgrimage site, including the shrine’s main church and St. Padre Pio’s Chapel of Lights. In one Instagram Story, he wrote,
“Pray, Hope, and Don’t Worry. Happy Feast Day of St. #PadrePio.”
The Holy See granted the Batangas shrine international status through a decree issued by the Dicastery for Evangelization on May 25, 2026, the 139th birth anniversary of St. Padre Pio. Church officials scheduled its formal declaration for September 23 to coincide with the saint’s annual feast.
The recognition makes the Santo Tomas church only the second international shrine in the Philippines, after the International Shrine of Our Lady of Peace and Good Voyage in Antipolo. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines had unanimously endorsed the Batangas shrine’s application for international status during its plenary assembly in July 2024.
The shrine’s history stretches back more than two decades. It began as a small chapel in 2003, was elevated to an archdiocesan shrine in 2008 and became a national shrine in 2015 before receiving international recognition from the Holy See this year. The 12-hectare religious complex also houses first-class relics of St. Padre Pio and has become a major pilgrimage destination for devotees.
Under Catholic canon law, international-shrine status requires approval from the Holy See and recognizes a pilgrimage site whose religious significance extends beyond a single country. Church officials have said the new designation is expected to strengthen pilgrimage and devotion among both Filipino and foreign devotees.
St. Padre Pio, an Italian Capuchin friar and priest, remains widely venerated among Catholics, particularly by devotees who seek his intercession for healing. His feast is observed every September 23, the anniversary of his death in 1968.
