Hawaii's visit from Fr. Aniello Salicone

Have you ever heard of Fr. Aniello Salicone? I hadn’t until just a couple of weeks ago. An acquaintance of mine invited me to her parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Pearl City, Oahu, where Fr. Aniello was presiding over a healing Mass this past December 13th. Yes - apparently this Italian-born Xaverian Missionary priest now residing in Wisconsin, USA, is a reported healer. In addition, he allegedly receives frequent locutions (audible messages) from Jesus Christ. Very extraordinary claims... but please note that this blog in no way anticipates the judgement of the Church about Fr. Aniello.  Rather, my intent here is to merely share my experience and readers may form their own opinion about this purported mystic-priest.

Fr. Aniello Salicone of Wisconsin

According to information I researched about Fr. Aniello on the internet, his personal encounters with the Lord actually began when he was just a boy in Campania, Italy, but the messages he received dramatically escalated into a healing ministry beginning in 1995. Since then he has traveled extensively conducting healing Masses and spreading the message of God’s love to all who’d listen… and now here he was in Hawaii.

Before launching into my takeaways concerning Fr. Aniello’s message, let me just preface by sharing what happened at the event. I’ll start by stating that I’m very glad I went. I was actually tired from a long day’s work and was cringing about having to forge through the heavy evening traffic going out to the Central Oahu church where the service was being held… so I planned on just going home instead. BUT... as I was walking to the parking lot, I felt strongly “urged” to go to the event by a nagging “feeling”. The inner feeling was so persistent it was like a voice, in itself, encouraging me to make the drive; to receive Jesus in Holy Communion; and to listen to what the priest had to say.  So off I went to Pearl City.

When I got to the church, it wasn’t at all crowded as I had expected it to be. In fact, the church wasn’t even full to its capacity, which I was somewhat happy about. The Mass had just started and there was Fr. Aniello sitting in a chair near the altar. He was a portly man with a paternal aura about him, who spoke with a slight accent that hinted of his Italian background. His voice was deep and had somewhat of a booming quality about it, but not in an unpleasant way.

The priest's homily consisted of various short stories about his experiences with our Lord that collectively testified to God’s immeasurable love for us. Other than the stories he shared, there was nothing about his appearance or demeanor that hinted of the alleged wonders that surrounded him. Rather, he gave me the impression that he was just a normal priest with a jolly sense of humor, who was trying his best to fulfill what he believed the Lord had asked him to do.

After the Mass ended, a short presentation followed and then the healing session began. People were invited to line up in front of the altar where Fr. Aniello softly prayed over each person, individually. Almost everyone who went up for a blessing safely fell backwards into the waiting arms of volunteers as they “rested in the Spirit”, including myself. For those who’ve never experienced resting (or being “slain”) in the Spirit, it’s a spiritual phenomenon during which an individual is overwhelmed by the tangible presence of the Holy Spirit to the point where he/she falls to the ground for a period of time in a state of heightened well-being and bliss; physical, emotional, and/or spiritual healing often occurs while an individual is in this state; or gifts of the Spirit may also be granted. For me, I recall my eyes being closed as a lay on the church floor, but I had the distinct sensation of being in the presence of a brilliant light that emanated a strong heat over me, especially on my face; I liken it to sitting outside on a warm day while the sun beams down its light and warmth all over you. Definitely unusual, given the time of day and the demographics of the church… but it felt comforting and peaceful as I lay temporarily oblivious of my surroundings.

Fr. Aniello (center) praying over people

at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in

Pearl City (Oahu), Hawaii.

And now for the takeaways. The entire event was a very intense spiritual experience for me, to say the least, and there were several points in Fr. Aniello’s talk that really made an impression on me. He said things that we should already know as Catholic-Christians, but the often-humorous manner he presented them, made them seem new somehow.  Below I summarize just a few key points from his overall presentation that I’d like to share with readers:

+ GOD'S LOVE IS LIMITLESS:  Fr. Aniello shared how Jesus told him several times in the past that He - God - loved him as His “Number One”; a revelation that brought him immense joy. Later, Jesus also made the same statement to the priest concerning the rest of us in this world, which then caused the priest to wonder how it was that each person could be “number one” to Jesus. In response, the Lord explained to the priest that His love was without limit, and uniquely personal between Him and each soul. As such, it was possible for every individual on the planet to be acknowledged and loved by God as His “Number One”.

+ PRAY WITH FAITH:  Fr. Aniello relayed the fact that sick people don’t have to be present at his services for a healing to take place. He emphasized that when he, or we, pray for someone’s healing (or any other intention) we should pray with the firm belief that Jesus is standing right beside us listening to every word we say. And just as He is standing with us, He is also beside the person(s) we are praying for because God is present everywhere. Furthermore, in response to our prayers, God will do one of two things – He will either grant us our request… or give us something “better for Eternity”, as Fr. Aniello put it. God will never fail in doing this so we shouldn’t be disheartened if it seems our prayers are ignored by God – we need to have faith that He has something better in store for us!

+ FORGIVE IN ORDER TO BE HEALED:  Fr. Aniello emphasized this strongly and related a story of a woman with crutches who Christ gave a personal message for during one of his healing services. Jesus, through Fr. Aniello, asked the lady to forgive her “ex-boyfriend” (people in the church giggled at this). When the priest relayed the message to her, the woman initially objected but then asked Fr. Aniello to help her do so. The priest directed her to pray with him a short, improvised prayer asking God to convert the man in question and to help him stop hurting other people, including the lady. In short, through their prayer together, Fr. Aniello helped the woman to make a start at forgiveness by channeling her strong resentment towards her Ex into something positive - an act of charity. He asked the woman to pray the words three times, each time with more sincerity, and when she was done, she walked away - healed - leaving behind her crutches.

Interestingly, Fr. Aniello also encouraged us to forgive the people who hurt us even if they’re already deceased, in case these individuals happen to be undergoing Purgatory. He shared that although we may not realize it, the Poor Souls are sorry for the hurt they’ve caused others while in this world - they feel contrition keenly but just can't express their apology… and sometimes the only thing these souls need to complete their expiation in order to enter Heaven is our forgiveness.  Very insightful.

+ SEE JESUS IN OTHERS:  In yet another story, Fr. Aniello relayed how he was up late one night browsing through several pictures of Jesus. He was trying to pick the image that he imagined best represented the Lord. Jesus suddenly came to him and spoke the following words, “Son, don’t waste your time. Look for my face in the faces of the people you meet every day.”  No clarification necessary - a short message that goes a long, long way!

   

A well-known portrait of St. Padre Pio,

the stigmatic priest-healer... and the round

stained- glass window of Our Lady of Good

Counsel behind the church's altar.

Lastly, besides being impressed by the message I heard, there were a few other unusual things I experienced at the event - apart from being rested in the Spirit - that left me receptive and open-minded about Fr. Aniello. First off, during his homily, there was a brief moment where it seemed to me that his face mysteriously morphed into the face of St. Padre Pio (his Patron Saint, perhaps?). The change was so distinct, I recall thinking to myself, “Hey – that looks like Padre Pio!” (exactly like the photo above), before the priest’s face returned to normalcy with glasses and tufts of long gray hair on his head. Secondly, there was a manifestation of escarchas on both my palms during Father’s Consecration of the Eucharist… and finally, while I was waiting in line in the center aisle of the church to be prayed over by Fr. Aniello, I glanced up at the stained-glass window of the Madonna and Child high above the back wall and saw a large formation of light in the center of it shaped like the head of a lamb. There’s normally no discernible lamb-image in the window but there it was – a pure white lamb amidst the darkened glass. It was so recognizable I immediately connected it to Jesus - the “Lamb of God” - who takes away our sins and heals our souls.

I don’t know if these things I witnessed were just figments of my imagination or optical illusions, but at the time, it all seemed very real to me. So much so that I’m still somewhat in awe, as I recall and record the events of that night in this particular blog. As already mentioned, I’m glad I made the drive to Pearl City and I thank God for not letting my laziness get the best of me in the parking lot!

Fr. Aniello has since left our island but he’ll be returning next year to be a guest speaker at a planned Sts. Damien & Marianne Conference in Honolulu in October 2017 (learn more here).  I’m looking forward to being there and hearing more of his stories and the insightful little tidbits from our Lord they include.  Until then, may God continue to use him to spread Love and Healing wherever he goes; the joyful message that proclaims we’re all number one in God's eyes.

Thank you, Jesus, for

loving me as your Number

One.  Help me to love you

and to love others the way

you love us.  Amen.

~ Fr. Aniello's Prayer

* * *  UPDATE  * * *

This ministry has recently learned that Fr. Aniello passed away on November 18, 2020, after apparently suffering from Covid-19 symptoms; he was 80-years-old.  May he rest in peace and enjoy the rewards of his labors for Christ.