At the end of the general audience on November 20 (International Day for the Rights of Children and Adolescents), Pope Francis announced the date of the canonization of Carlo Acutis, the fifteen-year-old from Milan who died in 2006 from fulminant leukemiacanonization already announced by the Pontiff last July 1st but the date of which was not yet known. At the same time, the Pope also announced the date of the canonization of Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925), a young Turin student, Dominican tertiary and member of the Vincentians, Fuci and Catholic Action.
There canonization of Acutis, whose beatification dates back to 2020, will be held during the Jubilee of Adolescents, scheduled for 25 to 27 Aprilwhile that of Pier Giorgio Frassati will take place between 28 July and 3 August, during the Youth Jubilee.
In response to Pope Francis’ announcement, with particular reference to the Ambrosian Carlo Acutis, the Archbishop of Milan, Monsignor Mario Delpini, he said: «Our land is a land of saints. There are the saints next door, those whose lives no one writes or for whom no one builds altars. They are the multitude that no one can count and that on a daily basis, without noteworthy feats, silently keeps the world on its feet. There are the blessed who lived in our countries and who the Church recognized as exemplary lives, which deserve to be known so that they can be imitated. There are saints who lived among us but who belong to everyone, who the Church offers to everyone so that everyone can pray to them with trust, listen to their words, know their works”.
And again: «Carlo Acutis is now a candidate for canonization which will be celebrated during the Holy Year on the occasion of the “Jubilee of adolescents”. Placed on the altars, he will be able to continue to say what he has said in recent years with his extraordinary popularity. He said – in fact – that we are all called to holiness: not only the poor, but also the rich, not only extraordinary personalities, but also ordinary people, not only the founders of religious orders, but also the admirers of consecrated persons and consecrate, not only the healthy, but also the sick, not only the adults, but also the adolescents”.
And he concluded: «The message is therefore aimed in particular at adolescents: perhaps they will listen to it and be called out of the house, out of their sadness, their complexes, their anger, their inconclusiveness. Perhaps they will listen to the voice that comes from heaven for them and will find the joy of living, the courage to love, the fortitude in suffering. Perhaps they will find the path to young holiness, following the path followed by Saint Carlo Acutis».
WHO IS CARLO ACUTIS
Born in 1991 in London, Carlo Acutis soon moved to Milan where he lived until his untimely death. The beatification ceremony took place on 10 October 2020 in Assisi, a place to which Carlo was very attached and where his remains are kept. His life – similar to that of many of his peers but also based on a profound Christian faith and characterized by numerous gestures of solidarity – has inspired and inspires many young people (and not only) all over the world. In the Diocese of Milan there have been numerous initiatives for years, in particular promoted by the Fondazione Oratori Milanesi (FOM), to make younger people aware of the figure of Carlo, who some define as “the first saint of the generation of millennials”. The liturgical memory of Blessed Carlo Acutis occurs on 12 October.
Photo @Ansa
