Leo XIV's announcement: "Frassati and Acutis are saints." Tens of thousands of people gathered at St. Peter's.

"We enroll Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis in the Roll of Saints, decreeing that throughout the Church they be devoutly honored among the saints." With this official formula, pronounced in Latin, Frassati and Acutis were proclaimed saints by Pope Leo XIV at the beginning of Mass in St. Peter's Square. Their relics were then brought to the altar.

Tens of thousands of faithful arrived in St. Peter's Square in Rome to attend the canonization liturgy celebrated by the Pope. The flow of people proceeded normally, according to information from the Office for the Management of Security for Major Events at the Rome Police Headquarters. A security detail of over 600 men and women police officers has been in place since yesterday evening.

Among the many present were Carlo Acutis's parents, an exceptional event considering that canonizations usually take a long time and it's rare for a parent to survive . A precedent was in 1950 with the canonization of Maria Goretti. His mother, Assunta, was present at the Mass celebrated in St. Peter's Square by Pius XII.

His father Andrea, his mother Antonia, his brother Michele, and his sister Francesca were present in St. Peter's Square for the canonization.

WHO I AM

Both new saints died very young. Pier Giorgio Frassati, born in Turin on April 6, 1901, and died at just twenty-five, was an Italian philanthropist and mountaineer, a student, and a Dominican tertiary. He was also a member of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, the Italian Catholic University Federation, and Catholic Action. Carlo Acutis's life was even shorter: born on May 3, 1991, and died on October 12, 2006, at just 15 years old. A computer enthusiast, Carlo used the web to publicize his exhibition "Segni," dedicated to Eucharistic miracles and which became famous worldwide. September 2, 2025.

(Unioneonline)