Enthusiasm grows for Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati

On Thursday, two huge tapestries depicting Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati were hung on the facade of St. Peter's Basilica. Commissioned by the Fabbrica di San Pietro, they were carefully crafted by a small Italian company and will remain in place until Sunday. They offer all the faithful a portrait of these two young Catholics whom the Church is preparing to elevate as models.

And for this great event, the Vatican's postal and philatelic service has also marked the occasion: two stamps bearing the images of the young saints will be issued on September 7.

The number of faithful expected in Rome for the canonization is still difficult to estimate, as no official figures have been released. The death of Pope Francis and the change in the dates of the canonization originally planned, announced by Leo XIV during a consistory on June 13, have probably prevented some from making the trip. But many are expected to attend.

The Prefecture of Rome has already announced the closure of many streets around the Vatican to facilitate the movement of the faithful, and plans to extend this security perimeter in the event of a large influx.

Italian Catholic Action, a great promoter of Pier Giorgio Frassati's cause, has been very active in recent weeks in promoting its former member. Following the “Frassati Days” organized this summer, a major international seminar followed by a vigil of prayer and adoration will be held in Rome this Saturday, the eve of the canonization.

The Polytechnic University of Turin has inaugurated an exhibition in honor of its former student, highlighting his committed life. Pier Giorgio was close to completing his engineering degree when he died suddenly in 1925.

The Archdiocese of Turin has also inaugurated an exhibition space, called “Towards the Other,” in honor of the future saint who died a hundred years ago. And the Cardinal Archbishop of Turin, Roberto Repole, who will be in Rome with a group of pilgrims, will celebrate a Mass of thanksgiving on September 28 in the cathedral where Pier Giorgio Frassati's remains rest.

Another initiative, this time led by the Diocese of Milan, is a “digital trail” for a spiritual walk in the mountains in the footsteps of Pier Giorgio, a great mountaineering enthusiast. In the same spirit, journalist Antonello Sica has published a book dedicated to the “Frassati Trails,” hiking routes created in all regions of Italy by the Italian Alpine Club in homage to the mountain saint. Catholic Action is not to be outdone, having launched a range of clothing, bags, and mountain accessories labeled “Verso l’alto” (Towards the Heights) in homage to Pier Giorgio.

The enthusiasm surrounding the canonization of Carlo Acutis is supported by two pillars of Italian Catholicism: the Archdiocese of Milan, where the boy grew up and died, and the Franciscan shrine of Assisi, where his remains now rest.

More than 1,000 pilgrims from the Lombard capital are expected, led by their archbishop, Mario Delpini. For the occasion, the latter has imagined a dialogue between Carlo Acutis and Jesus, in which the young Italian questions his popularity. “Saints embellish the Church and make the path to holiness attractive, because they become instruments of the Holy Spirit,” Jesus replies.

A Mass of thanksgiving will be celebrated on Monday in St. Peter's Basilica, followed by another on the following Monday in Milan Cathedral. In the weeks following the canonization, the chaplaincies of the Ambrosian city will welcome a “prayer team” carrying the relics of the new saint. A school in a Milan neighborhood is also to be renamed Carlo Acutis.

From Assisi, about 800 pilgrims are expected to travel to Rome. The Umbrian city has become a major center of devotion to Carlo Acutis since his remains were placed on display in the Franciscan sanctuary of the Spoliation. The diocese of Assisi announced that the small church was expecting nearly 7,000 visitors on the day of the canonization.

The celebrations will continue until October 12, the feast day of St. Carlo, with a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin.

There are many initiatives for Carlo: in Scauri, in Lazio (the region containing Rome), a statue of Carlo will be unveiled after a pilgrimage of motorcyclists. In Austria, Father Heinz Purrer, a priest and composer, has written a “Carlo Acutis Mass” as well as a musical that will be performed in the Diocese of Linz this fall.

In Campo Grande, Brazil, a sweatshirt that belonged to the future saint is on display all week. It was in this city in 2010 that young Matheus Lins Vianna, then aged 6, was cured of a serious pancreatic malformation after touching a relic of Carlo in the chapel of São Sebastião. This healing was recognized as miraculous by the Holy See, allowing for his beatification.

The enthusiasm for young Carlo owes much to Antonia Salzano, mother of the future saint and a great promoter of his devotion, who has distributed relics all over the world. In recent months, she has given numerous interviews to the international press, which will be published this Sunday.

A publisher and author of spiritual works, she has published several books she has written about her son, two of which are already available in English: My Son Carlo - Carlo Acutis Through the Eyes of his Mother; and God’s Influencer: Holy Advice from Carlo Acutis.