Padre Pio and devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

The first meeting between Padre Pio and the Sacred Heart of Jesus
To talk about this meeting we have to go back over the years. When Francesco Forgione (Padre Pio) was a 5 year old boy.
The little Francesco Forgione grew quickly and soon revealed a lifestyle that was a little different from his peers. He did not like to play with them and, when mother Peppa encouraged him to have fun with the other children, he refused saying: "I don't want to go because they blaspheme".
His favorite pastime was prayer
His favorite pastime was prayer. He spent time in recollection in the church where he had been baptized. When it was closed it stopped in front of the door, sitting on a spike of rock.

A lot of devotion stemmed from the example of the mother, Mamma Peppa, who assiduously attended the Mass before starting the housework or in the fields. Her maternal grandmother was also a woman of prayer. Maria Giovanna, who often had the task of guarding her grandchildren.
Nonna Maria Giovanna was a woman "without doctrine", but wise, "merciful to the poor", cautious, prudent, witty, who "attended the church over and over a day, never failing to often confess and communicate".
Also, the father, Grazio, although not having the same strong religiosity as his wife and mother-in-law, distinguished himself from the average of the men of the time. He did not blaspheme and every evening the Rosary was recited in his home.
The encounter with the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Francesco was five years old. One day, while he was immersed in one of his usual, intense moments of prayer, an extraordinary event occurred. The child, who had long felt the desire to consecrate himself entirely to God, saw the Heart of Jesus before the altar.
The Son of God did not speak. With one hand she nodded to invite him to come closer. The boy obeyed. When he came before Jesus, he put his hand on his head, without saying anything. But Francis read in that gesture the acceptance of his purpose.
Other celestial visions cheered the life of that child, who jealously kept the secret of the apparitions and of the silent pact made with his Lord hidden in his heart.

Source teleradiopadrepio.it