Pope Leo XIV leads an ordinary public consistory of cardinals to approve the canonization of eight candidates for sainthood and set a date for the canonization of Blessed Carlo Acutis at the Vatican June 13, 2025.
CNS photo/Vatican Media
June 13, 2025
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Pope Leo XIV will canonize Blesseds Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati together Sept. 7, the Vatican announced.
Meeting with cardinals living in and visiting Rome for an ordinary public consistory June 13, the pope approved the new canonization date for the two young blesseds and set Oct. 19 as the date for the canonization of seven others. He announced the dates in Latin.
The canonization of Blessed Acutis, a teenager known for his devotion to the Eucharist and creating an online exhibition of Eucharistic miracles, had originally been scheduled for April 27 during the Jubilee of Teenagers. It was postponed following the death of Pope Francis April 21.
Born in 1991 and raised in Milan, Blessed Acutis used his tech skills to evangelize and was noted for his joyful faith and compassion for others before dying of leukemia in 2006 at age 15.
Blessed Frassati, born in 1901 into a prominent family in Turin, Italy, was admired for his deep spirituality, love for the poor and enthusiasm for life. A member of the Dominican Third Order, he served the sick through the St. Vincent de Paul Society. He died at age 24 after contracting polio, possibly from one of the people he assisted.
The two Italian laymen will be the first saints proclaimed by the new pope, who was elected May 8.
Although the Vatican had never officially set a date for Blessed Frassati's canonization, Pope Francis said last November that he intended to proclaim him a saint during the Jubilee of Youth July 28-Aug. 3. The official website of Blessed Frassati's canonization cause had said the canonization would take place Aug. 3, when the pope is scheduled to celebrate Mass with thousands of young people on the outskirts of Rome.
Wanda Gawronska, Blessed Frassati's niece and a longtime promoter of his sainthood cause, told Catholic News Service she was disappointed in the date change, noting that "thousands and thousands of people have tickets to come to Rome for the canonization in August."
During the same consistory, Pope Leo also confirmed that seven other blesseds will be canonized Oct. 19, World Mission Sunday. The group includes men and women from five countries, among them martyrs, founders of religious congregations and laypeople recognized for their heroic virtue and service.
They are:
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