Luciana Frassati / Wikimedia Commons
CV NEWS FEED // Pier Giorgio Michelangelo Frassati was born in Turin, Italy, on Holy Saturday, April 6, 1901, into a prominent, influential family. His mother, Adelaide Ametis, was a painter, and his father, Alfredo Frassati, was the founder of the influential newspaper La Stampa and served as an Italian senator and ambassador to Germany.
Pier Giorgio’s father Alfredo, although a cradle Catholic, was agnostic during his son’s life, and the newspaper he founded was secular and unsympathetic to the Church. Alfredo returned to his faith after Pier Giorgio’s death.
From an early age, Pier Giorgio demonstrated a profound spiritual life. He joined the Marian Sodality and the Apostleship of Prayer, obtaining special permission to receive daily Communion—a rare practice at the time. His devotion to the Holy Eucharist and the Blessed Virgin became central to his prayer life, which he openly shared with his friends.
At the age of 17, Pier Giorgio joined the St. Vincent de Paul Society, dedicating much of his time to serving the poor, caring for the sick, and assisting returning World War I servicemen. He pursued a degree in mining engineering at the Royal Polytechnic University of Turin, explaining that he wanted to “serve Christ better among the miners.”
Despite the demands of his studies, he remained actively involved in Catholic organizations, including Catholic Action and the Catholic Student Foundation. He also worked with the People’s Party, promoting Catholic social teaching as outlined in Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical Rerum Novarum.
Pier Giorgio was deeply committed to serving the poor, often giving away his bus fare to help someone in need and running home to stay on schedule. He saw this work as a privilege, considering the poor his “masters” and himself their servant. This spirit of charity was nourished by his frequent reception of the Eucharist, nocturnal adoration, and meditation on St. Paul’s “Hymn of Charity” (1 Corinthians 13) and the writings of St. Catherine of Siena. He often skipped vacations at his family’s summer home in Pollone, saying, “If everybody leaves Turin, who will take care of the poor?”
A lover of the outdoors, Pier Giorgio used his mountain-climbing excursions with friends as opportunities to share his faith, leading his companions to Mass, Scripture readings, and praying the Rosary. He also enjoyed the arts, frequently attending the theater, opera, and museums, and could recite long passages of Dante’s poetry. His admiration for St. Paul’s epistles and Renaissance preacher Girolamo Savonarola inspired him to join the Lay Dominicans in 1922, taking the name “Girolamo” in honor of Savonarola.
Pier Giorgio was strongly anti-Fascist, a stance that sometimes put him in physical confrontations. He stood firm in defending the faith, whether opposing anticlerical Communists or Fascists. During a Church demonstration in Rome, he rallied others by grabbing a fallen banner, raising it higher, and using its pole to protect himself against police blows.
In 1925, shortly before completing his degree, Pier Giorgio contracted poliomyelitis, likely from one of the sick people he had served. Despite his own suffering, he continued to prioritize others, scribbling a final note to arrange medicine for a poor man he had been helping. He died on July 4, 1925, at just 24 years old. His sister Luciana recounted the details of her brother’s death in a moving book, “My Brother Pier Giorgio, His Last Days.”
His funeral revealed the scope of his impact. The streets of Turin were filled with mourners, many of whom were the poor and suffering he had served, unknown to his family. These individuals were surprised to learn that the humble young man who had cared for them was part of the prestigious Frassati family.
Pope John Paul II, who admired Pier Giorgio’s life and legacy, described him as “a young man who was able to witness to Christ with singular effectiveness in this century of ours.” The Pope credited Pier Giorgio’s example with inspiring his own youth. On May 20, 1990, Pope John Paul II beatified Pier Giorgio in St. Peter’s Square, calling him the “Man of the Eight Beatitudes.”
Pier Giorgio’s incorrupt remains were exhumed in 1981 and moved to Turin’s cathedral, where they draw pilgrims, especially young people, seeking inspiration and courage to follow his example of faith and service.
Pope Francis announced on Wednesday, November 20, that Frassati’s canonization will take place during the Jubilee of Youth from July 28–Aug. 3, 2025. The specific date has yet to be announced.
