Today is July 2, Wednesday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time.
We read at today’s Mass, “When the poor one called out, the LORD heard, and from all his distress he saved him. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them” (Ps 34:7).
These words from Scripture set the stage for the second Beatitude: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
Now when we think about mourning in the life of Pier Giorgio, we might first think of his sorrow over injustice and inequality. He was deeply moved by the suffering of the poor and was a tireless advocate for them. But I want to highlight something more personal, something quieter and deeply human: the sorrow he experienced in love.
In 1925, Pier Giorgio had developed feelings for a young woman named Laura. His family disapproved of the relationship, and his sister Luciana was the one who had to tell him. This was not some passing infatuation — it was a real and painful sacrifice. In a letter dated March 6, 1925, he wrote about this struggle: “In my inner struggles, I have often asked myself, why should I be so sad? Should I suffer and bear the sacrifice with a heavy heart that is separating from this young woman? Have I lost my faith? No, thank God, my faith is still steady enough.”
A ‘worthwhile’ sacrifice
What’s remarkable is how Pier Giorgio processes this pain. Rather than despair, he leans into his faith. He concludes, “Every sacrifice is worthwhile only for this.”
“This,” of course, is his relationship with Christ. For Pier Giorgio, even romantic sorrow could be offered as a sacrifice — transformed into love for God. This is what it means to live the Beatitude. Blessed are those who mourn, not because mourning feels good, but because our sorrows, offered to Christ, become a path to deeper joy.
So today, whatever sorrow you carry — whether personal, relational or spiritual — offer it to the Lord. Remember Pier Giorgio’s words: Every sacrifice is worthwhile only for this.
Let us pray,
O God, who through the grace of adoption chose us to be children of light, grant, we pray, that we may not be wrapped in the darkness of error but always be seen to stand in the bright light of truth. 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.
