ROME— Pope Francis announced Wednesday that Blessed Carlo Acutis and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, two young Catholics beloved for their vibrant faith and witness to holiness, will be canonized during two major Jubilee celebrations dedicated to young people.
The surprise announcement came at the conclusion of the pope’s weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square as Francis celebrated World Children’s Day.
Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni later confirmed that Carlo Acutis’ canonization will occur during the Church’s Jubilee of Teenagers taking place April 25-27, and Pier Giorgio Frassati’s canonization will take place during the Jubilee of Youth from July 28 to August 3.
According to the Diocese of Assisi, Acutis’ canonization Mass is expected to take place on Sunday, April 27, at 10:30 a.m. local time in St. Peter’s Square.
Both soon-to-be saints are beloved by many Catholic young people for their enthusiastic pursuit of holiness. The two canonizations are expected to bring many young people to the Eternal City in 2025 for the Catholic Church’s Jubilee of Hope.
Carlo Acutis: the first Millennial saint
Carlo Acutis, an Italian computer-coding teenager who died of cancer in 2006, is known for his great devotion to the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.
READ: Carlo Acutis to be first millennial saint: Pope Francis recognizes miracle for canonization | Carlo Acutis: What the first ‘millennial saint’ says about the Catholic church’s future
Born in 1991, Acutis is the first millennial to be beatified by the Catholic Church. Shortly after his First Communion at the age of seven, Carlo told his mother: “To always be united to Jesus: this is my life plan.”
To accomplish this, Carlo sought to attend daily Mass as often as he could at the parish church across the street from his elementary school in Milan.
Carlo called the Eucharist “my highway to heaven,” and he did all in his power to make this presence known. His witness inspired his own parents to return to practicing the Catholic faith and his Hindu au pair to convert and be baptized.
Carlo was a tech-savvy kid who loved computers, animals, and video games. His spiritual director has recalled that Carlo was convinced that the evidence of Eucharistic miracles could be persuasive in helping people to realize that Jesus is present at every Mass.
Over the course of two and a half years, Carlo worked with his family to put together an exhibition on eucharistic miracles that premiered in 2005 during the Year of the Eucharist proclaimed by Pope John Paul II and has since gone on to be displayed at thousands of parishes on five continents.
Many of Carlo’s classmates, friends, and family members have testified how he brought them closer to God. Carlo was a very open person and was not shy about speaking with his classmates and anyone he met about the things that he loved: the Mass, the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, and heaven.
He is remembered for saying, “People who place themselves before the sun get a tan; people who place themselves before the Eucharist become saints.”
Carlo died at the age of fifteen in 2006, shortly after being diagnosed with leukemia. Before he died, Carlo told his mother, “I offer all of my suffering to the Lord for the pope and for the Church in order not to go to purgatory but to go straight to heaven.”
Thousands of people visited Carlo’s tomb in Assisi following his beatification in the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi on October 10, 2020.
Since his beatification, Catholic schools from the Australian outback to England have been named after Acutis, as well as countless ministries and parish initiatives.
Pope Francis encouraged young people to imitate Blessed Carlo in prioritizing “the great gift of the Eucharist” in his message for the upcoming diocesan World Youth Days.
Pier Giorgio Frassati: ‘To the heights’ of holiness
Pier Giorgio Frassati, who died at the age of 24 in 1925, is also beloved by many today for his enthusiastic witness to holiness that reaches “to the heights.”
The young man from the northern Italian city of Turin was an avid mountaineer and third-order Dominican known for his charitable outreach.
Born on Holy Saturday on April 6, 1901, Frassati was the son of the founder and director of the Italian newspaper, “La Stampa.”
At the age of 17, he joined the St. Vincent de Paul Society and dedicated much of his spare time to taking care of the poor, the homeless, and the sick, as well as demobilized servicemen returning from World War I.
Frassati was also involved in the Apostleship of Prayer and Catholic Action. He obtained permission to receive daily Communion.
On a photograph of what would be his last climb, Frassati wrote the phrase “Verso L’Alto,” which means “to the heights.” This phrase has become a motto for Catholics inspired by Frassati to strive for the summit of eternal life with Christ.
Frassati died of polio on July 4, 1925. His doctors later speculated that the young man had caught polio while serving the sick.
John Paul II, who beatified Frassati in 1990, called him a “man of the eight beatitudes,” describing him as “entirely immersed in the mystery of God and totally dedicated to the constant service of his neighbor.”
The Vatican has yet to announce the recognition of the second miracle attributed to Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, which made his canonization possible.
The confirmation of the miracle from the Vatican, along with the announcement of the specific date of Frassati’s canonization Mass, are expected in the future.