Beneath Mary’s Mantle: Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925)
St. Dominic once had a dream in which he saw all the saints of the Order safely beneath the mantle of Mary, Protectress of the Order of Preachers. In this blog series, we’ll introduce our beloved Dominican Saints, learn about their lives and work, and come to see how they still inspire and pass on their gifts to today’s faithful.
Patron of Sportsmen
Born: Holy Saturday, April 6, 1901 in Turin, Italy
Died: July 4, 1925 in Turin, Italy
Feast Day: July 4
There are few saints who attract as much ready attention in popular Catholic culture as Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati (Fra Girolamo of the Third Order of Saint Dominic). Young, vibrant and athletic, he was known not only for his sense of humor and his keen strategies for evangelization (he frequently cajoled fellow students into attending Mass or Adoration by beating them at a game of pool), but also for an unflinching dedication to justice and care for the poor. It’s hard to find a personality more relatable and he has quickly become an unofficial patron for youth alongside his more formal patronage of sportsmen. (He was an avid mountaineer.)
Born in Turin, Italy in 1901, Bl. Pier Giorgio began life in a very comfortable position. His father, Alfredo Frassati, was an Italian Senator and the founder and editor of the later-famous newspaper, La Stampa. His mother, Adélaïde Ametis, was a renowned painter whose work was commissioned by King Victor Emmanuel III. But, as is the case with almost every life that appears comfortable from the outside, the reality in the Frassati family was often a cold one. Caught in a strangulating competition for status between themselves, Pier Giorgio’s high-achieving parents were frequently disinterested in his life and that of his young sister, Luciana, and when they were not, their demands were overbearing. While Pier Giorgio struggled in school (twice having to repeat a year), his own failures affected him far less than the intense disapproval of his parents and the loss of honor for his family.
This disapproval descended not only with regard to his academic career (and later his choice of profession in mining Engineering) but also in response to his increasing passion for his Catholic faith. The agnosticism of both parents was derisive of any faith taken to ‘extremes’ and Pier Giorgio’s daily Mass attendance and active involvement in the Federation of Italian Catholic University Students (FUCI) definitely fit the bill. This was only exacerbated by his decision in 1922 – inspired by the writings of St. Catherine of Siena – to join the Lay Fraternity of St. Dominic, which he did, taking the religious name ‘Girolamo’ after the Dominican Renaissance preacher and reformer, Girolamo Savonarola. Pier Giorgio’s father was openly scornful and refused to accept that Frassati should do anything but follow him into his role as editor of La Stampa. His mother, on discovering he was assisting a few destitute families in Turin, flatly forbade him to do so any further.
It was for this reason that despite his intense involvement in caring for the poor in Turin and his outspoken opposition to fascist nationalism in Mussolini’s Italy, his parents had little to no idea what their son was really up to! It wasn’t until his funeral in 1925, when hundreds of Turin’s poor came to pay tribute to the young Dominican, that they realized the extent of his love and self-gift in pursuit of a more just society. Even his early death, from a case of poliomyelitis contracted in his work among the sick, came as a total surprise to them. Suffering quietly for days in order not to dishonor his grandmother, who was also dying, Pier Giorgio was finally unable to conceal the intensity of his pain and when instructed by the family doctor to ‘get up’, he was forced to admit in a way that remained with his sister for years afterward, “I can’t anymore.” He died very shortly afterward, on July 4th, and the impact of his life became instantly visible.
In addition to the overwhelming grief of the poor and sick, hundreds came forward to say how Pier Giorgio had brought them to faith and helped them overcome obstacles to living faithfully and fruitfully. He was intensely respected by his contemporaries for his intelligence, warmth and devotion and had been a symbol of hope and perseverance for them all. Nothing signified this better than a story of his involvement in a Church-approved protest against Mussolini’s fascist government in 1921. Challenged by the aggression of the nationalist police, the FUCI banner had been dropped and the students began to disperse. Frassati, convinced of the rightness of their opposition to such brutal tactics had quickly picked up the banner and marched forward with renewed resolve, leading hundreds of others to do the same in the face of intimidation.
Living in a climate of aggressive opposition to the Faith, be it in society, among our friends or even within our own families, it is easy to grow not only discouraged, but sometimes bitter and resentful towards those with whom we disagree. We can even be tempted to close ourselves off from others completely and slip into the casual comfort of a self-congratulating ‘faith’. Blessed Pier Giorgio, however, offers us a bold and lively alternative. Instead of closing down into factions, it is possible to stand up for what is right while opening our hearts to those who do not know Christ. It is possible to bear the weight of opposition with warmth and a robust love that seeks to bring the Truth even to those who violently denounce it. It is possible to trudge up the mountain of this conflict with respect, hope and persistent dedication to all that is right and truly just. May we enter with Blessed Pier Giorgio into this difficult, more Christ-like way and may the Lord bless these endeavors with the same fruit that Frassati saw in the lives of countless friends and strangers.
Bl. Pier Giorgio, pray for us!
