"To the Heights"
- Dec 10, 2025
- 5 min read
By: Luis Nava
On Sunday, September 7th, 2025, two young men were canonized by Pope Leo XIV, becoming role models, especially for all youth. The names of the two young Italian saints are St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati. This article will focus on the latter. In just 24 short years, St. Pier Giorgio Frassati lived an admirable life of virtue, and his legacy continues to inspire young people across the globe.
For some family background, St. Frassati’s father, Alfred Frassati, purchased a newspaper in 1895, renovated it, and became co-owner of the paper he named La Stampa. Later, he would go on to become the complete owner, but in 1926, he was forced to sell it as Mussolini (an infamous dictator) rose to power. La Stampa remains an influential news source in Italy to this day. St. Frassati’s mother, Adelaide Ametis, was also invested in the humanities, as she was a talented painter.
When St. Pier Giorgo Frassati was born on April 6th, 1901, Alfred and Adelaide were wealthy, influential, and agnostic (meaning they claimed God’s existence could not be proven). One year after St. Frassati's birth, Alfred and Adelaide had Luciana. Throughout their lives, St. Frassati and Luciana would be very close friends. In a letter he wrote to his best friend after Luciana had just married and moved away from the family, St. Frassati explains how, although he felt happy for Luciana, it was hard to see her go: “You can imagine my only sister, the companion of my childhood: to see her leaving for such distant shores was for me a stroke in the heart.” Luciana lived to 105 years old, and she wrote two books about St. Frassati’s life, titled “A Man of the Beatitudes: Pier Giorgio Frassati,” and “My Brother Pier Giorgio: His Last Days.”
From his early life, St. Pier Giorgio was a “man of the Beatitudes" and a model of virtue. Once, he answered the door to find a homeless woman with her son, and he removed his shoes and gave them to the boy, who was barefoot.
As he grew up, St. Pier Giorgo developed into a lively young man with a deep love of Christ and a firm faith. He continued acting charitably as he did when he was a little boy, sometimes giving the money for his bus fare to people in need and running to his destinations instead. When he was not studying, one of his favorite pastimes was mountain-climbing and spending time in nature. During his excursions, he would continually pray and speak about the Faith with his companions. On his last climb, he wrote a note on the back of a picture, which read, “Verso L’Alto,” meaning “to the heights.” This short phrase can be applied to our daily Faith journey, as we all strive to reach “the heights” of Heaven.
One of the attributes that makes St. Pier Giorgo a great role-model for young people is his relatability. For example, he loved dogs and cats, as his family had four dogs and several cats over the course of St. Pier Giorgo’s life. In letters to his sister, he would often send greetings to his pets, with phrases such as, “a pawshake to Mime and Uadi.” Additionally, he struggled in school, having to repeat a course on two different occasions. Despite feeling embarrassed and upset for failing, he remained determined to work hard. In a letter to his father, he wrote, “I hope you will once again believe in the sincerity of my resolve to study this year.” For these reasons, he is the patron saint of students, meaning you may want to ask for his intercession before your next big test! St. Pier Giorgio graduated high school in 1918, but, unfortunately, he passed away while he was two exams away from completing his college degree. 100 years after his death, he was awarded his college degree in commemoration of his passing away. St. Pope John Paul II called St. Pier Giorgo, “a man of the beatitudes,” and this is also evident in the specialty he chose to study in college. He elected to study mining engineering, which is a field in which many people in need worked. He wanted to work side by side with them to “serve Christ better.”
When St. Frassati was 24 years old, he contracted polio, but he was always caring for others, even from his deathbed. The day before his death was a Friday, the day when he usually visited his friends in need. So, despite having a half-paralyzed hand, he still wrote a note to his friends and asked his sister to deliver the note and a package to his friends. In 1925, St. Pier Giorgio passed away. Some say that he got polio from aiding the sick and needy. Hundreds of the people he helped during his life attended his funeral, testifying to the amount of lives he changed and the amount of hearts he comforted.
In 1981, St. Frassati’s body was exhumed, and it was found to be incorrupt, meaning that it looked exactly the same as the day he had died! 9 years later, St. Pope John Paul II declared St. Frassati blessed, and he was canonized in 2025.
In order for someone to become an officially recognized saint, they must first become a “Servant of God,” then “Venerable,” then “Blessed,” then finally, they may become a “Saint.” On the road to canonization (“the formal process by which the Church declares a person to be a saint and worthy of universal veneration,” as defined by USCCB), there must be two miracles attributed to the saint, although the pope may bypass the requirements. The second of the miracles attributed to St. Frassati occurred in 2017. A young seminarian was playing basketball with other seminarians when he tore his achilles. He knew it would be a long, expensive, and painful, recovery process, so he visited a chapel, where he felt compelled to make a novena to St. Pier Frassati. During a press conference, the seminarian, Juan Gutierrez (now Father Juan Gutierrez), stated how a couple of days in the novena, “I was praying, and I started to feel a sensation of heat around the area of my injury. And I honestly thought that maybe something was catching on fire, underneath the pews.” After this moment, he was completely healed. He visited the surgeon a week later, and, after viewing the MRI and doing physical tests, the surgeon told him, “You must have someone in heaven who likes you.”
Thanks to St. Frasatti, Gutierrez was healed. Today, St. Frasatti continues to serve as an inspiration for everyone, but especially for young people. Whether you are struggling with school or seeing someone else go through a hard time, strive to imitate St. Frasatti. Work hard, and be a friend to all. St. Frasatti, pray for us!
https://ewtnvatican.com/articles/12-amazing-facts-about-the-life-of-saint-pier-giorgio-frassati-6357
gerni my friend.
How about 15.01% ownership(joke)? Very nice. I also want to become a writer, and will probably message you sooner or later
I want 15 % ownership
this is awesome tho
Ts is so tuff js like u luis