The Flying Friar Files: Secrets Behind the Levitation Miracle

Hello everyone!

For today's episode we dive into the case of St. Joseph of Cupertino, the 17th‑century friar whose reported levitations captivated cardinals, inquisitors and even a pope. Known as the Flying Friar, Joseph’s ecstatic flights during Mass and public processions were recorded by dozens of witnesses including skeptical clergy and doctors.

In this episode, we explore his humble beginnings, the Vatican investigations, and the science vs. miracle debate surrounding this Catholic saint. Perfect for fans of true‑story mysteries, supernatural phenomena, and historical miracles, this story bridges faith and reason. Learn how the Church documented at least seventy levitations, why Joseph was later secluded in remote monasteries, and why his legend endures as the patron saint of pilots and air travelers.  Unravel the secrets of the Flying Friar and decide for yourself: miracle or myth? 

Thank you so much for listening, if you're a fan of the show please review. I am a one-gal show trying to manage getting new episodes out for y'all every week while still working my corporate job!

Thank you all. 

Transcript

0:05

The church is packed. It's the feast of Saint Francis of Assisi and the little town of Cupertino. Candles flicker against the whitewashed walls, and voices tumble in prayer. A young friar stands at the altar with his hands raised. His eyes glaze over. His jaw relaxes and his body goes still. Suddenly, with a cry that echoes through the aisle, the friar begins rising into the air. Not metaphorically. Literally. He hangs there long enough for people to gasp, cross themselves and whisper, desperate prayers before drifting down like a feather. By the time his feet touch the floor, his life has changed forever. You may be thinking whatever. This is so fake. But before you write it off, hear me out. This isn't some cute prolog to a legend. This is the first of dozens of levitation investigated, documented, and sworn to by priests, doctors, and even cardinals. and ultimately the Pope. Today's case file is on the Flying Friar Saint Joseph of Cupertino. Welcome to the unseen witness. Here we cover the cases. Old and new. Were faith meets violence. Miracles meets documentation, and the supernatural refuses to stay quiet. you want more stories like these, make sure to follow or subscribe on whatever platform you're on. Without further ado, let's open the case file to the Flying Friar. The unseen witness. The subject's real name is Giuseppe Desa born June 17th, 1603, in the tiny, Apulian village of Cupertino, southern Italy. His father Felix, a carpenter, fled town to avoid prison for debt leaving his pregnant wife Frances to give birth in a stable behind their seized home. She worked and begged to keep them alive, and disciplined her son so harshly that Joseph later said Franciscan penances felt easy by comparison. Joseph's childhood was a mass of malnutrition, illness and humiliation. He could barely read, and often other children mocked him and called him“The Gaper” because he would often stare into space, mouth open. Lost in his own world. He broke dishes in the monastery kitchen, forgot chores, and zoned out into what looked like an unconscious prayer trance. Still they tried to make him useful. He was apprenticed to a shoemaker, but he failed. He was rejected by multiple religious houses and begged to be taken back. Eventually, his uncle, a Franciscan priest, got him into a friary as a servant. He was slow, clumsy, absent minded, constantly hungry, and prone to bizarre ecstasies. Witnesses later said he could not complete a sentence or express a thought, and called himself, quote, dumb like an ass, end-quote. By every normal standard, he was not priest material, but his superiors kept stumbling over something they couldn't ignore. Underneath the awkwardness was a brutal honesty and a deep humility. He obeyed. He did the worst jobs without complaining. He loved God with a kind of raw, unashamed intensity. when Joseph asked to become a friar for real and study for the priesthood, they hesitated. He barely knew Latin and could not memorize theological texts, and had already failed at everything else. Still, they let him try. Somehow, he scraped through two famous stories, follow his path to ordination, in one the bishop randomly opens the Bible, points at a verse, and asks Joseph to explain it. The verse happens to be the one and only Joseph knows by heart, in another. The examiners rushed for time, approves the first candidate who answers well and then just passes all the rest, including Joseph, without individually questioning them. Either way, Joseph's ordination looks less like an academic success and more like divine intervention. He was ordained in 1628 and celebrated his first mass in tears. His job stayed basic, tending meals, begging for alms, doing grunt work. But he did them with a strange joy that people couldn't quite explain. To understand why the world later freaked out over his life. You kind of have to sit with how he started. Picture it a kid literally born in a shed because his family home was seized. A fugitive dad, a mom exhausted, desperate and furious that this sickly little boy couldn't contribute. Joseph grew up underfed, physically weak, and constantly punished in a world that valued hands on skill. He couldn't manage even simple tasks. His shoes were crooked. His work sloppy people ridiculed him, and it would have been easy for him to become bitter or violent. Instead, he turned inward and upward. He started spending long hours in the local church, staring at statues and relics. One biography says he would talk to the crucifix like it was a living person, completely unaware of those who were watching. As a teenager, when a wandering friar showed up in town. Poor, simple and peaceful, the image branded itself into Joseph's imagination. He wanted that life a place where poverty was a good thing and simplicity wasn't a defect, but a gift. The universe, however, did not roll out a red carpet for him. But he didn't stop wanting it, nor did he stop working towards it. before his famous flights, Joseph displayed lesser anomalies that kind of paved the way for his big reveal. I guess you can say Joseph would stop mid task. Eyes locked on something invisible, body rigid. Coworkers poked him with pins. No reaction. Called his name. Nothing. He might cry, smile, or let out a strange sound. After the episode was over, he claimed he had heard heavenly music. witnesses later claimed that he sometimes knew things he shouldn't know, like someone's hidden sin or a distant death. He predicted events he couldn't have known of and reacted intensely to the smallest religious trigger a hem, a crucifix, the name of God. He could lose awareness so deeply the friars had to prick or lightly burn him in an attempt to snap him out of it, and even sometimes that wouldn't work. And then there was the acts of strength. The most famous, Joseph supposedly moved a 36ft cross single handedly after ten men had failed to do so. I mean, Gotham honestly could have just been saved by saints. No need for Batman or the Suicide Squad. Side note though, there is a rumor that Batman is Catholic, and if that's the case, it's pretty freaking cool because I'm a huge Batman fan. These moments gave him a reputation, but also terrified people. This was 17th century Europe. Witch trials, demon panic, superstition everywhere. A friar who entered trances, talk to crucifixes and moved massive objects alone that was not a safe profile. His superiors often lean toward natural explanations, a cataleptic episode. Mist reported strength, overexcited witnesses, There was no rush to declare anything miraculous. Miraculous? I get one an episode. Okay. And yes, another side note. I just want to say it's actually so crazy to me that we live in a world even through Christian historically. You can see it here where we will quickly deem such miracles to the devil or, an exorcism or something satanic when none of those supernatural powers that the devil is able to possess and put on to its victims can even exist if it wasn't for the ler the lert if it wasn't even for the Lord. So, I just think it's absolutely bonkers and wild that when we know how great and amazing the miracles in the Bible are, we now live in this world where we're so quick to assume devil before God when we see something insane. Okay, so I just want to bring that up and I'm wondering what your thoughts are on that because, yeah, I don't know. I just find it a little wild. At first, many friars thought that he was possessed or delusional. Over time, though, his obedience, self-denial and honest humility chipped away at their suspicion. The first major levitation on record takes place during a procession honoring Saint Francis around 1630. Joseph is carrying a candle, part of the solemn line. Suddenly he lets out a cry and shoots upward, hovering above the crowd. People watch stunned as he remains lifted long enough for everyone to realize this is not just a jump. Mortified, Joseph runs to his mother's house afterward, and refuses to come out. But the damage is done. The story spread like wildfire. and even crazier, more incidents follow. He levitates during mass while chanting the Gloria. He rises with chalice and paten in his hands. He's seen floating up into a tree to greet birds like some kind of medieval holy Disney movie. These aren't rumors written centuries later. They were repeatedly sworn to under oath. During the investigation that followed. A flying friar is not something you can just casually ignore. Crowds flood the church whenever Joseph is scheduled to say mass. People want a show. His superiors are horrified. The liturgy is being disrupted. Skeptics are mocking. And the Inquisition is very much a thing. So they do. What institutions do they escalate? Joseph is summoned, questioned, examined by theologies and doctors. They dig into his background. They interview witnesses. This is not handled like some kind of fan club. It's handled like an internal investigation. At one point, Pope Urban the 8th wants to see for himself. Joseph is brought before him. He enters ecstasy, lifts off the ground in front of the Pope, and only returns to the floor when ordered to do so by his superior. The Pope reportedly said that if Joseph dies first, he will personally testify to what he saw. Which I don't know why he would have to die to personally testify. So if you know the answer to that, let me know, because I forgot to look that up. Even with that, the church stays cautious. They're trying to figure out, is this God? Is this the devil? Is this a clever fraud? some friars attempt to catch him faking, So they begin issuing obedience commands mid levitation or they would test his reactions. One detail sticks out whenever he's commanded to stop in the name of his obedience. The levitation sees instantly, which I think is like a huge sign when deciding if it's demonic or not. Because the demonic from my research doesn't listen to anybody unless it's like coerced and forced and like you have to put it under the name of God multiple times. And even then they put up a heinous fight. Anyway, okay. Eventually, after years of watching him and testing him, Joseph is cleared of wrongdoing but cleared isn't the same as free. To reduce scandal, he is quietly removed from center stage. To keep the spectacle contained. Joseph is transferred again and again, always to a quieter, more remote house. He is forbidden to celebrate public mass. Forbidden to preach. Kept away from laypeople. When the word gets out and crowds start to form. He is moved again, like some mystical witness protection program. He spends 16 years at Grotella and near total obscurity. He's given a tiny room, a loud private mass manual labor, and limited contact. The brothers notice that he spends long hours in the garden praying. Sometimes he slowly rises while still kneeling, as though someone had hooked an invisible string to his chest and is gently lifting his levitation don't stop. They just lose their audience. 70 are formally recorded during these years alone. 70 levitations. That is insane. And the fact alone that it's happening just within private walls is enough for me to understand that this has nothing to do with him trying to make an ego spectacle or anything like that. friars eventually become so used to these that they stop documenting every instance. In this hidden period, other reports also intensify. He reads hearts in confessions, revealing sins never spoken out loud. He foretells the deaths of popes. He is seen at the bedside of people dying miles away. What later writers call bio location, which is another thing that I want to cover because some of the cases about bio-location are absolutely bonkers. The friars who record these things are not fanboys. They're not TikTok commenters. They're not followers. They're just religious men filing reports to superiors who are actively trying not to be duped. Later, Joseph is moved again, this time to Osmino, under even tighter restrictions. His letters are censored. His contact with others strictly controlled. Even so, he can't stop reacting. The name Jesus sends him into a trance. A church bell rings and he groans like someone stabbed him with an awe and sometimes lifts right off the ground. He fast, heavily wears chains, and still manages to be gentle with the novices as who visit him. He calls them, quote unquote, my little angels, encourages them to love God and gives them simple, practical advice about work and daily life. Echoes of his own rough upbringing. Isolation protects him from accusations, but also turns his life into a kind of living imprisonment. He accepts it with obedience, even in times of inner darkness. On October 18th 1663 at six years old, Joseph of Cupertino dies in obscurity, watched over by a few friars. Not the massive crowds he once drew. Step back from Joseph for a moment and you realize the idea of a saint leaving the ground was not unique to him. Long before his time. Saint Francis of Assisi was said to lift from the floor while praying before the crucifix. Saint Teresa of Avila writes that she sometimes found herself several inches above the ground, and would beg the other nuns to hold her down so that guests wouldn't see her levitating. Hagiographers mention Alphonsus Liguori, Martin de Porres, Seraphim of Sarov, Padre Pio, and others who reportedly spent moments suspended up in the air. What makes Joseph different isn't that he levitated. It's how much and how publicly and how well documented they were. Other saints had rare private moments. Joseph had hundreds, many in front of large assemblies, nobles and skeptical investigators. His flying friar reputation exploded so wildly that artists carved and painted him mid-flight, and theologies wrote entire pieces trying to make sense of him. If levitation is a language in the mystical tradition, Joseph didn't just speak it, he shouted into it. Now, don't get me wrong. You'd be absolutely right to say okay, but isn't this just a pious fanfic? The unnerving part is that Joseph's story doesn't rest on vague legends a hundred years later. It rests on paperwork. When the church opened his cause for canonization, they didn't just say he was nice. Stamp him clear. They compiled 13 large volumes of sworn testimony. We're talking princes and ambassadors, cardinals and bishops, inquisitors, physicians. Ordinary friars and laypeople all interviewed, all under oath. Their testimonies don't just describe dramatic levitation. They describe Joseph's language. Forgetting things, petting animals, messing up daily tasks, being awkward and sweet, and very human. They captivated his full way of being, from his miracles to his kindness to his soul. This level of documentation is unusual for the 1600s. Earlier saints were often canonized based on reputation and long standing devotion. Joseph is canonized with the equivalent of a legal archive behind him, which is crazy. The process was slow because the church was deliberately suspicious. Every claim, every witness, every story had to be weighed and re weighed and relayed. Those 13 volumes now sit in the Vatican like the spine of case file 001. You don't have to believe a single miracle to recognize this. The people around Joseph took him and his weird life very seriously. With that being said, let's do the thing we have to do in the 21st century. Drag this wild story into the lab, try to pull Joseph back down into a purely natural framework, and you end up wandering a maze of possibilities. Maybe Joseph was experiencing rare neurological or psychological states. Deep ecstasies can make people rigid and sensitive to pain. Motionless. Think a human statue totally gone somewhere inside. That could explain the trances, the staring, the unresponsiveness, the weird cries. But here lies the problem. have no documented neurological state that makes a human body float. Freeze! Yeah. Float. Fly. Hover. No. Another option could be that Joseph was a very committed performer in a very naive age. Maybe he jumped balance on hidden support, or used body strength and positioning to create the illusion of being suspended. Witnesses sometimes mentioned him rising from a kneel or holding on to something, while the beginning of his hovering would happen with enough strength and drama. It's possible that some of these could be misread by already odd spectators, but that still doesn't explain being able to fly across the room or up to a tree. It's not like they had the wires we do today in media. Another thing that could have played a part is A large, emotionally primed crowd misperceived things all the time. Expect a miracle, and suddenly every unusual movement feels supernatural. A leap becomes a flight. A sway becomes a suspension. That explanation works up to a point. It struggles with the fact, though, that many witnesses were trained theologies and physicians who saw him under controlled conditions, with no crowd frenzy to hide behind and still came away saying, yeah, I don't know what that was, but it wasn't normal. at the end of all the rational angles, one last possibility still stands. Maybe for reasons we cannot test or reproduce. Joseph of Cupertino really did leave the ground. Maybe something punched briefly through the normal rules of physics and hauled a humble friar upward. The church, after decades of investigation and plenty of hesitation, ultimately filed his levitation under genuine miracles and moved on. But there's one more lens I kind of love the poetic one. Some spiritual writers say that Joseph floated because he was light. Now, physically, existentially. He had no career prestige, no ego to defend, no image to carefully curate. He was emptied of pride, ambition and self-importance in that reading has levitation for the outside of what was happening inside A man sooo surrender to God that even gravity seemed like just one more thing he was willing to let go of. A man emptied of pride rises. A man who carries nothing rises. A man who gives himself completely to God, rises. and Joseph kept rising again and again, like gravity occasionally just forgot about him somehow. Mystical theologies don't see Joseph's flights as circus acts. They see them as eruptions of love. Whenever God's name was pronounced, whenever he saw a crucifix or the holy house of Loretto. Something in him lit up. His body became secondary like a coat he forgot he was wearing. Witnesses said he looked less like a man pushing off the ground, and more like someone being pulled up from above. And that view. He is not breaking nature's laws. He is nature overwhelmed by grace. Classical theology says grace doesn't destroy nature. It perfects it. So the person is radically surrendered, emptied of self and filled with love. whose to say what that might look like on the outside? Still, interpretation is personal, and I'm super aware of that. Some people see delusion or mental illness. Some see metaphor and exaggeration. And some see God's fingerprints. And I'm. I'm some. Even the church wasn't in a hurry. They isolated him, investigated him, doubted him, and held the bar high. No one, just fastly rubber stamped his case. This isn't a segment that ends in a hard verdict. It's an invitation. You get to decide if Joseph was lifting into heaven or slipping into fantasy. You see, once you walk through the whole file, you're left with a paradox. On one side, hundreds of witnesses were there high ranking clergy and officials, doctors and theologians, a pope willing to testify, copies of investigations and sworn testimonies. And on the other side, even Catholics today can be on the spectrum of modern skepticism, misperception, human tendency to exaggerate, or psychological and neurological unknowns. What everyone can agree on, though, is the boring basic facts. Joseph existed. He became a priest. He entered deep trances. He was investigated over and over, and he died in 1663. And by boring. I'm not being disrespectful. I just mean, like, not the mystical stuff dozens of levitations were formally recorded. Beyond that, we step out of hard data and into interpretation. Like I stated earlier, whether he truly defied gravity or simply inspired people to think he had this legacy stuck. Today he is the patron saint of pilots astronauts. I can never say that word. And air travelers. A man who could barely pass exams. Now attached to the most advanced forms of human flight. Maybe the real miracle isn't the floating. Maybe it's this a poor, clumsy boy born in a shed mocked as stupid. Rejected again and again. Becomes somehow a symbol of spiritual ascent. That refuses to fade. And a symbol for everyone. After Joseph died, the story didn't shut down. It expanded. Pilgrims visited his tomb asking for help. Reports of healing and answered prayers piled up. The church which had once confined him, now reopens its case and slowly move toward declaring him a saint. His life seeped into books, artwork, homilies, and even a mid 20th century film. Scientists poke at levitation stories from time to time. Quantum effects, weird forces, speculative physics. But nothing comes close to explaining a full grown man hanging in mid-air at a packed feast day mass. So with that being said, case file 001 stays technically unresolved. Was Joseph of Cupertino a man who literally floated above the ground? A gifted performer misread by hopeful crowds? Or just a fragile, strange soul whose presence made people see beyond the ordinary. Whatever answer you lean towards, his story hovers in that liminal space where history and mystery overlap, and where faith and reason keep arguing not as enemies, but like two very stubborn friends who both think that they're right. If you want more episodes like this, please hit subscribe. Follow on whatever platform you're on. Leave a review so the channel can keep growing. Your support really does make these stories possible. thank you for joining me for another episode of The Unseen Witness and let me know your thoughts down below or if you have any case recommendations, yeah that's it. Thanks, guys. Y'all have a nice day. I will talk to you later. All right. Bye.