Stigmata
Stigmata are wounds that appear on a person's body corresponding to the wounds Christ suffered during his Passion — most often on the hands, feet, and side — reported throughout Catholic history in a small number of saints and mystics.
Francis of Assisi, the First Recorded Case
Saint Francis of Assisi is traditionally regarded as the first person in Church history to bear the stigmata, reportedly received in 1224 after a vision during a period of prayer and fasting on Mount La Verna, two years before his death. Witnesses at the time and his early biographers described wounds that did not heal for the rest of his life.
The Church's Cautious Approach
The Catholic Church does not require belief in any particular case of stigmata, even in saints who reportedly bore them, and treats each claim with careful investigation rather than automatic acceptance. Padre Pio, a twentieth-century Capuchin friar, is among the most documented modern cases, having reportedly borne visible wounds for around fifty years before they disappeared shortly before his death.
Related Saints
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Church require Catholics to believe in stigmata?
No. Reports of stigmata are treated as private revelation, which Catholics are never obligated to believe even when a case involves a canonized saint.
Are stigmata always visible wounds?
Most reported cases involve visible wounds, but some accounts describe only the pain of Christ's wounds without any visible mark, sometimes called invisible stigmata.