Today is July 10, Thursday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time
We read at Mass today, “Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give” (Mt 10:8).
What a powerful call to generosity. When I reflect on that kind of self-gift, two people come to mind immediately: the Blessed Virgin Mary and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati.
Pier Giorgio had a profound devotion to Our Lady. Remarkably, he was born on a Saturday — a day traditionally dedicated to the Virgin Mary — and he died on a Saturday as well, passing from this life under her loving mantle. On his nightstand at the time of his death was a copy of the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a prayer he recited faithfully.
The Rosary, too, was a cherished part of his daily prayer. His sister Luciana recounts a beautiful moment from their childhood: Their father once discovered Pier Giorgio kneeling by his bed, rosary in hand. He didn’t say anything to his son at the time but later remarked to their parish priest, “What have you done to my boy?” The elderly monsignor, who had baptized Pier Giorgio, simply replied, “Perhaps, Senator, you would prefer him to fall asleep with some novelette on his night table?” A wise and gentle response.
Mary is always close
Pier Giorgio not only prayed the Rosary daily, but he also carried it everywhere. While walking through Turin on errands for the St. Vincent de Paul Society, he would pull his beads from his pocket and encourage others to pray with him. In this way, he lived out the Dominican charism, which includes a special mission to promote devotion to the Rosary. This Marian devotion, so deeply Dominican in spirit, nourished Pier Giorgio’s generosity and strengthened his resolve to serve others.
If you don’t already pray the Rosary daily, why not begin today? Start small with a decade here, a Hail Mary there. Hold the beads in your hand. Carry them in your pocket or your bag. Let that physical connection remind you that Mary is always close, always interceding.
Let us pray,
O God, who in the abasement of your Son have raised up a fallen world, fill your faithful with holy joy, for on those you have rescued from slavery to sin you bestow eternal gladness. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
