The Man of the Beatitudes The is on for souls! Families are waking up, taking notice of the world's influences on their children's lives and they are horrified! And rightly so! They've lost control. We get call after call commending us on our television programs on the Super Saints. And they are from Catholics and non-Catholics, lay people parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles; Religious, Nuns and Pastors thanking us for bringing heroes their young people can use as role models. The cry is always the same! The false heroes they see on secular television are not the kind of people they want their young to emulate or grow up to become. And so, the Lord placed on our hearts Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati!
With God, there is no such thing as coincidence, with the exception of possibly Holy coincidence, when God the Creator and Author of Life wishes to allow us to glimpse into the plan He has laid out for all His children. We know that God calls us all to holiness, giving us an opportunity to become Saints. But then there are those He chooses to bring His message to the world. He gives us insights, seemingly coincidental, as to whom He chooses and how He will use these specially chosen ones. If we listen and pray, we will begin to comprehend how God makes messengers of His chosen ones, whom He fills with a burning desire to love Him and with that love bring His message to the world. We have traveled far and wide, tracking the lives of the Saints, never disappointed. We are always discovering the Lord's teachings through these faithful holy servants who loved Him so, He became their whole lives. This is the story of a young man from a family just like yours, in some ways and not at all in others.
Our story begins, appropriately, or should I say divinely, as the bells in the Basilica of La Crocetta, across the street from the Frassati home, peel out new Hope, the new Light cutting through the dark, sounding the Easter Vigil of the One Who has Risen, in the cold city of Amidst the hustle and bustle of city life, a cry would ring out, and one day reach the four corners of the world. Little did Alfredo Frassati and his wife Adelaide Ametis expect, or realize, for one moment, that the young man God sent to them on Holy Saturday, April 6 th in the year 1901, would become a powerful role model of the 20 th century. Because he was a frail and sickly baby, they were afraid he would not survive, so his parents had him hurriedly baptized at birth, by their friend Monsignor Rocati in the Five months later, they would have a more ceremonious baptism for their new born baby on the 3 rd anniversary of their wedding, September 5 th in the parish church of their summer residence in Pollone, il
From the very beginning of Pier Giorgio's life, the signs were all there! When the Light cut through the darkness, bringing Hope to the world, a little flicker of that Light would come to Earth, for a little while, but to touch the world for generations to come. Always ahead of us, planning ahead, God knew we would need a Pier Giorgio to be a sign, a beacon which all, but especially the young could follow to do battle against the evil that threatens humanity today! Although never sacrificing his love and duty toward his family, this young man grew up to become a staunch defender of the poor, the sick and those lacking the opportunity to earn a fair living. His way was not through revolution and chaos; but through personal sacrifice. He felt called to do all he could do to make life a little easier for his fellow man. And it was important then as it is now!
So that the world would know there is goodness in the midst of apathy and self-interest, the Lord sent a rose into the world, which would scale mountains and cross valleys and touch nations, to bloom, in a short period of time, into a magnificent bouquet, whose fragrance would cover the face of the earth. The Lord sent His Word and His Will thousands of miles to bring this young Blessed to tell you there is hope, that Jesus cares, that we can trust in Him! This story is about a young man who was born at the turn of the 20th century to wealth and position. The Lord would choose this young man to be a contradiction not only in the world of his time, but for all time, as he brought the Beatitudes to the whole world; his preaching - his life and death.
The Eucharistic Lord was his King, his sovereign Lord, whom he never ceased to adore. No matter what he did or said, Pier Giorgio was strengthened by his daily prayer life and his daily reception of the Holy Eucharist. He spent long nights into dawn before the Blessed Sacrament adoring his Lord, listening to his Lord, supplicating his Lord to have mercy on his friends the poor and helpless he adopted on his way, the poor, the sick and the disadvantaged!
Most of what we share with you came from the two books written by Pier Giorgio's sister, Luciana, who was his only childhood friend. As children they were inseparable, his sister having been born only 17 months after her one-day famous brother. In the early years, they were not allowed to have friends. They were alone in the big house in , and the mother's family home in the mountains of Pollone. They were not allowed to talk to adults, so, they had each other. She loved him very much, but didn't understand him during his lifetime, or share his love for the Church and the poor. It was only after his death, in hearing testimony from all those who knew him and loved him for all that he did, that she came to terms with the Saint who had been living with her all those years.
His father, Alfredo Frassati was a very important man. He was the editor-in-chief, and founder of La Stampa, 's most important daily newspaper. He was also very actively successful in the political world; he was rewarded by becoming the youngest Senator and Ambassador to The more successful he became, the more he threw himself into his work, which kept him away from the family. He never understood his son's spirituality. What we don't understand, we criticize. He belittled his values and religious practices. One time when the father saw Pier Giorgio kneeling by his bed at night, praying the Rosary, he went to the parish priest and asked what he had done to his son to make him do this. The reply from the priest was, "Would you rather he be reading cheap novels?" The father balked at this. "Of course not!" he said. However he still didn't understand.
But make no mistake! Pier Giorgio's father loved him deeply and after his son died, he could not bear to see his pictures, as it was too painful. After his son's death his father resigned as ambassador to because he believed Pier Giorgio thought so highly of him he knew his father would.
His mother was also very self-involved. She was an accomplished artist, having sold one of her paintings to the king of She was not involved in her husband's career, which had taken off quite brilliantly. She was very opinionated, especially in matters of the Faith, and was not very well-versed in those matters. His parents had a problem, or at least his mother had a problem with Confession and Communion. She didn't want Pier Giorgio to go to confession, because she feared that the mention of impurity would cause him to have impure thoughts. She was not pleased when Pier Giorgio was allowed to receive Communion daily, as she feared it would become more of a habit than a grace. She opposed his request to receive the Eucharist daily. He had to beg for four days before she finally gave in out of frustration. She also criticized the going to Daily Mass as being the habit of silly women. She just didn't understand her son's values.
Pier Giorgio and his sister had difficulty learning, especially Latin, and so Pier Giorgio and Luciana, the only member of the family he was truly close to, were separated. As he was a boy, his parents wanted Pier Giorgio to go to the best schools, so they enrolled him in the His mother and father became their own worst enemies. Pier Giorgio took to the school immediately. He asked to be taught more on the bible. He found himself leaning toward the priesthood, but knowing his mother's strong feelings he put that dream out of his head but not out of his heart.
One of his greatest joys was that he could attend Mass every day, and receive Holy Communion daily at his new school. But it wasn't all roses at his new school. At first, he had to suffer attacks from the other students because of his father and his position. But soon their derision turned into admiration, as they discovered Pier Giorgio was a fellow student who was willing and available to do anything that had to be done. He was no longer the senator's son, but a fellow classmate who earned their respect. He was a real young man in the purest sense. He loved to play practical jokes on his friends and then he loved to share his love for the Eucharist and his Faith, with them. Because of his enthusiasm and joy, they hung, spellbound, on his every word.
He formed a group which he named Tipi Loschi (or in English Shady Characters). They not only prayed together, they had fun which sometimes turned into playful mischief. They loved to be with him and he loved to be with them. The Rosary was his life line! No matter how tired he was, before retiring, he knelt by the side of his bed and prayed the Rosary. This is how his father found him asleep at the end of a long day.
Pier Giorgio joined the university's Catholic Action- Cesare Balbo
Always highly principled, he could not be persuaded to take off his Catholic Action badge, when he entered the different factories. As the workers were all revolutionaries and he the son of a wealthy publisher of a newspaper, he could easily become a mark for them to vent their anger against. But there was something about him, when he looked in their eyes that were so compelling; they found themselves listening to him with many returning to the Church.
Pier Giorgio reached out to soldiers returning from the war. He attended their meetings; encouraged them to return to civilian life. It was important to him, as they could return to families and peace or become strong dissidents bent on trouble. They listened to him! He joined in as they shouted "Viva Wilson" lauding the American president who was advocating a lasting peace. Pier Giorgio wrote:
"In the world there are so many evil people, and many even call themselves Christian, but in name only, not in spirit. I think peace will be a long time coming. But our Faith teaches us that we must always keep on hoping we shall enjoy it one day. Modern society is wracked with the sorrows of human passions, and is moving away from any idea of love and peace."
Pier Giorgio's work was not confined to mere political struggle and revolt. He was against violence, but was prepared to fight and die, if necessary, to defend Christ. He repeatedly wrote and advocated the following: "When all accept Christ' voice and teaching, we will be able to say we are all equal, and every difference between human beings will be annulled.'
Bob Lord Bob
and Penny Lord were born Catholics,
but walked away from their Church and
their Lord after their son's tragic death,
due to an overdose of drugs.
Through the intercession of Our
Lady, They came back to Jesus and
His Church, only now as Converts, on fire, thirsting to know more about this Church founded by Jesus.Through
Mother Angelica, and EWTN, what
began as a national outreach to 40,000,000 homes has grown into international evangelization to the
whole world through television, radio
and the printed word. Bob and Penny have hosted 10
television series for EWTN- shown on a rotating
basis 5-7 days a week and
have made over 200 programs in all to date. Authors - Well-known
throughout the world
They have written 25 books, two of
which have been translated into various languages. The
Ministry publishes a quarterly newspaper, the
Good Newsletter.
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