St Pier Giorgio Frassati: A Young Man of the Beatitudes

St Pier Giorgio Frassati, a young man of great spirituality and charity, died aged 24, 100 years ago.

Frassati was an extraordinary young man whose life was a testament to faith, charity, and joy. Born into an affluent Italian family, he rejected the privileges of wealth and instead chose a life of simplicity, service to the poor, and devotion to God. Despite his early death at just 24, Frassati’s legacy continues to inspire Catholics worldwide, especially young people seeking to live out their faith in the modern world.

Pier Giorgio Frassati was born on April 6, 1901 — Holy Saturday that year — in Turin, Italy. His father, Alfredo Frassati, was the founder and editor of the newspaper La Stampa, one of Italy’s biggest titles, and later served as an Italian senator and ambassador to Germany. His mother, Adelaide Ametis, was a renowned painter whose clients included King Victor Emmanuel III.

From an early age, Pier Giorgio displayed a deep sense of compassion and faith, despite growing up in a household where religion featured only casually. His parents were not religious, and Alfredo was more concerned with political and social status than religious practice. However, Pier Giorgio’s grandmother and his Jesuit teachers nurtured his faith, and he developed a strong devotion to the Eucharist and Our Lady.

Although intelligent, Pier Giorgio was an average student at school. When he failed his exams in 1913, he was sent to a private Jesuit school. After his schooling, he studied for a degree in mining engineering at the Royal Polytechnic of Turin. His goal was to work among miners, a profession that would allow him to help improve the conditions of the working class.

As a student, Frassati helped found a newspaper, Momento, to advance the principles of social justice based on Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical Rerum Novarum. He joined the St Vincent de Paul Society and used his access to money to help the poor. This concern went back to his childhood. Once, a mother knocked on the Frassatis’ door asking for alms. Seeing that her son was barefoot, Pier Giorgio took off his shoes and gave them to the boy.

‘Charity is not enough’

A committed opponent of fascism — in 1921, he was arrested during an anti-fascist demonstration in Rome during the Young Catholic Workers Congress — Frassati was engaged in the works of social justice through his membership of Catholic Action and the Apostleship of Prayer. He often said: “Charity is not enough; we need social reform.”

As a graduation present, his father offered Pier Giorgio either a car or a substantial fund to provide financial security. Pier Giorgio chose the latter so he could give to the poor.

In 1922, Frassati became a professed member of the Third Order of St Dominic, taking the religious name of Girolamo, in honour of Girolamo Savonarola, the executed 15th-century Dominican friar who denounced corruption, immorality, despotic rule, and the exploitation of the poor.

At home in the mountains

Frassati was also a keen outdoorsman, especially mountain-climbing in the nearby Alps.  His favourite ascent was the 4061m-high Gran Paradiso mountain, which he climbed in 1923. He often used the mountains as a metaphor for the spiritual journey. He famously said, “Verso l’alto” (To the heights), a phrase that reflects both his passion for mountaineering and his spiritual aspiration towards holiness.

A cultured young man, Frassati loved the theatre and the cinema — as long as they were not vulgar — and could freely recite from Dante’s Divine Comedy. He also spoke German.

His joy was said to be infectious, and he had a deep love for his friends, frequently organising trips, sports events and prayer gatherings. Frassati had a great ability to integrate his faith with his friendships and hobbies. But his friends also called him Il Terrore (“The Terror”) for his fondness for playing practical jokes.

Sudden illness

On June 30, 1925, Frassati was boating with friends when he complained of sharp back pain. The following day, he contracted a fever, but since his grandmother had died that same day, he deflected attention from himself. On July 2, Frassati could not move, and a doctor was finally called. His diagnosis was polio, the kind contracted by adults.

On July 4 at 19:00, Pier Giorgio died in his mother’s arms, aged only 24. He was buried in the Frassati family plot at a local cemetery. In 1981, his remains were transferred to Turin’s Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista and found to be incorrupt.

At his funeral, thousands of people lined the streets of Turin to pay their respects. His parents were shocked to see the outpouring of love from the poor and suffering whom Pier Giorgio had secretly served.

The sainthood cause for Pier Giorgio Frassati opened in 1932, and he was beatified on May 20, 1990, by Pope John Paul II. The pope had visited his tomb a year earlier and called Frassati a “Man of the Beatitudes”, because he embodied Christ’s teachings in the Sermon on the Mount. His younger sister Luciana, a social justice activist in her own right, attended the beatification. She died in 2007 at the age of 105.

Frassati’s legacy lives on in many ways. Several Catholic organisations and youth groups bear his name, and he has been named the patron of World Youth Day, students, young people, mountaineers, and Dominican tertiaries.

‘Nothing is more beautiful than love. Indeed, faith and hope will end when we die, whereas love, that is, charity, will last for eternity.’

Published in the July 2025 issue of The Southern Cross Magazine