Dear Friends,
One life lived well can inspire millions of people. During this Holy Year of Hope and third year of the Eucharistic Revival, three ordinary young people who lived life in an extraordinary way are presented by the Church as role models for youth and young adults.
2025 will mark the canonizations of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, an athletic engineering student and mountain climber from Turin, and Blessed Carlo Acutis, a teenaged gamer from Milan and co-patron of the National Eucharistic Revival. Both future saints exhibited deep faith and resolve in facing serious illnesses which led to their untimely deaths.
Although he grew up in a family that had lapsed in the practice of their faith, Pier Giorgio was steadfast in his. He had a devotion to the Blessed Sacrament and often spent whole nights in Eucharistic Adoration. Although he was the son of a wealthy Italian senator and newspaper owner, Pier Giorgio used his personal resources to alleviate the poverty and suffering of the destitute and homeless in Turin. Pier Giorgio did not hesitate to visit the city's slums and homes of the impoverished. This likely exposed him to the polio virus which claimed his life at the age of 24.
Pier Giorgio was misunderstood by his parents who perceived him as lazy and irresponsible. They often criticized him. It was only at his funeral, which was attended by thousands of Turin's poor and marginalized, that his family came to know the real Pier Giorgio. The life of this future saint impressed St. John Paul 2 so much that he referred to Pier Giorgio as the "Man of the Beatitudes. "
The Eucharist was the core theme of the life of Blessed Carlo Acutis. His yes to God inspired millions of people to grow closer to Jesus through Mass and the Eucharist. This youthful software developer catalogued all the known Eucharistic miracles and approved Marian apparitions on a website which he designed. Even as a young child he attended daily Mass. Following his First Holy Communion he made a commitment to receive the Eucharist daily. On his website he wrote, "the more we receive the Eucharist, the more we will become like Jesus, so that on this earth we will have a foretaste of heaven." His love for the Eucharist led his non-practicing Catholic parents to return to the faith. Subsequently, his mother and other relatives would accompany him to daily Mass.
Blessed Carlo is relatable to modern youth. He had his own laptop, a PlayStation and a flip phone. (At the time iPhones were not invented.) He played soccer and taught himself the saxophone. He was a "normal teenager" but with a profound spirituality and concern for others. You might say that he lived with one foot on earth and the other in heaven. Blessed Carlo also had a devotion to the Holy Family whom he saw in the poor and homeless. Even as a young child he interacted with the poor, providing a sleeping bag for a homeless man at the doors of the parish church and bringing Tupperware filled dishes of fresh, nutritious food for the destitute and homeless.
Blessed Carlo's canonization will take place during the Jubilee of Teenagers, April 25-27, 2025. Blessed Pier Giorgio's canonization will take place during the Jubilee of Young People, July 28 - August 3, 2025.
Although perhaps as not well known as Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati or Blessed Carlo Acutis, the Servant of God Michelle Duppong, a North Dakota native and FOCUS missionary, inspired many college students during her six years of FOCUS ministry. Her generous and loving spirit was fueled by daily Eucharistic Adoration. Later, in her role as Adult Faith Formation Director, Michelle organized a Eucharistic Conference for the Diocese of Bismark in 2013. Michelle was influenced by the charism of the Missionaries of Charity in whose convents beneath the Cross is the statement of Jesus - " I thirst.". The 2013 Bismark Eucharistic Congress was thus named the Thirst Conference.
Despite a terminal cancer diagnosis in December 2013, Michelle did not dwell on her own health situation but continued to be focused on others, whether it be hospital staff or patients, friends, acquaintances, or family. She demonstrated gratitude for every kindness extended to her and reveled in the simple graces and experiences of each day. An EWTN production on her life is appropriately titled Radiating Joy.
During this Holy Year may we radiate joy and look to the example of these three holy young people who allowed Jesus in the Eucharist to transform their lives.
Blessings,
Sister Marcella Louise Wallowicz CSFN
