VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The thousands of young people attending next week’s Jubilee of Youth in Rome will not see the canonization of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati as they had planned, but at least they will have a special opportunity to venerate his incorrupt body.
Blessed Frassati’s body will be brought from his tomb in the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Turin and placed in Rome’s Basilica of Santa Maria sopra Minerva on July 26. Cardinal Baldassare Reina, vicar general of the Diocese of Rome, will celebrate a Mass at the basilica that evening, after which Blessed Frassati’s body will be available for veneration through Aug. 4. The initiative will include a series of talks and Masses organized by the Dominican Order; Blessed Frassati was a member of the Dominican Third Order.
The U.S.-based John Paul II Project will be providing support for the visit by having young adult alumni of its programs keep watch over Blessed Frassati’s body, according to a July 18 press release.
Alumni will also be serving as missionaries in three locations for events that are free and open to the public, it said. The events in English will include talks, Eucharistic adoration vigils, street evangelization and projects to serve the homeless — a fitting way to honor a young man known for his love of the poor and needy of Turin.
Pope Francis had intended to proclaim Blessed Frassati a saint during the summertime Jubilee of Youth, which runs July 28-Aug. 3. However, his canonization and that of Blessed Carlo Acutis, originally scheduled for April 27, were moved to Sept. 7 following Francis’ death and the election of Pope Leo XIV.
A relic of Blessed Acutis will also be available for veneration during the Jubilee. The Church of San Marcello al Corso will become a “Blessed Carlo Acutis Center,” hosting the first-class pericardium relic, as well as talks, prayers and Masses.
Visitors will also be invited to write their prayer intentions on cards, which will be taken to his tomb in Assisi, Italy, according to Catholic Christian Outreach, which organized the initiative.
