Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
~ This Sunday, September 7, Pope Leo XIV will canonize two extraordinary young people, St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati. Though separated by time and circumstance, these new saints share a similar melody of faith, charity, and the courage to live the Gospel in the modern world.
The canonization of St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati is a reminder that sanctity is not reserved for an elite or for those removed from the everyday struggles of life, but is a vocation open to all, especially young people! These two saints, one from the early twentieth century and the other from the dawn of the twenty-first, show us that holiness is possible in any era, and that the pursuit of God does not require the abandonment of the world, but rather its transformation through love.
St. Carlo Acutis, a teenager who lived in the digital age, harnessed the power of technology to spread devotion to the Eucharist and to share the story of God’s love. His life was marked by a simple but profound motto: “The Eucharist is my highway to heaven.” Carlo was not a priest, a missionary in a distant land, or a founder of a religious order; he was a student, a son, a friend. Yet he realized from a young age that Christ is truly present and accessible to all. Through his website cataloging Eucharistic miracles and his gentle witness to friends and family, Carlo demonstrated that holiness is not at odds with modern life. He showed that the tools of our age – the internet, social media, technology – can become instruments for good. His message is refreshingly countercultural: instead of being consumed by screens, we are called to use them to illuminate the world with the light of Christ.
Long before the digital revolution, St. Pier Giorgio Frassati embodied the Christian call to live the Beatitudes. Born into privilege, he could have chosen a life of comfort and ease, but instead, he poured himself out in service to the poor, the sick, and the marginalized. An avid mountaineer, Pier Giorgio found God’s presence both in the heights of the Alps and in the faces of those suffering in the streets of Turin. His joyous spirit, love for the Eucharist, and commitment to social justice made him a beacon for his peers. He famously said, “Verso l’alto!” – “To the heights!” – reminding us that sanctity is not static or passive, but a dynamic ascent toward God. Pier Giorgio’s friendships, engagement with the world, and love of beauty all point to a faith that is deeply integrated and vibrantly alive.
What unites St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati is not simply their youth, but their conviction that holiness lies in the ordinary, sanctified by love. Both were deeply rooted in prayer and devotion to the Eucharist; both were attentive to the needs of those around them; both understood that friendship with Christ overflows into friendship with others.
For today’s youth and for all Catholics, St. Carlo and St. Pier Giorgio are more than figures of the past; they are living witnesses of discipleship. Carlo’s creative use of technology inspires us to evangelize in new arenas. Pier Giorgio’s commitment to justice and love for the poor challenges us to see Christ in every person. Both remind us that the path to sainthood is paved with small acts of love, carried out with fidelity and joy.
Their lives urge us to ask: How can I use my talents, my circumstances, and my relationships to bring God’s love into the world? How can I, like Carlo and Pier Giorgio, embrace the call to “be saints in jeans and sneakers,” living radically for Christ amid daily life?
In honoring St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati together, Pope Leo and the Church remind us: The saints are not distant or unattainable; they are our friends, our contemporaries, our guides. Their lives urge us onward, toward the heights of holiness, toward the heart of Christ in the Eucharist, toward a world transformed by love.
May their intercession inspire us all to follow with faith, to serve with joy, and to climb together – toward the heights!
St. Carlo Acutis, pray for us!
St. Pier Giorgio Frasatti, pray for us!