On September 7, 2025, in a square San Pietro crowded with faithful, Carlo Acutis And Pier Giorgio Frassati Saints were proclaimed by Pope Leo XIV. Two young young people for era and context, but both capable of embodying a holiness close to the new generations. Carlo, also known as the “Holy Millennial“, he died at the age of 15 in 2006 due to a leukemia: passionate about computer science and faith, he is known for having created a website on Eucharistic miracles and for the miracle that made his canonization possible, the healing of a Costarican student by a serious brain injury. Pier Giorgio, Turin, who died in 1925 for only 24 years of Poliomielite, is remembered for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion for his passion mountain, its social commitment and closeness to the poor.
In his message, the Pope underlined how both show that holiness is not far or unattainable, but you can live in daily life:
We look at Carlo and Pier Giorgio – he said – as concrete examples of young people who have been able to live with joy, faith and generosity.
Become saints, though, It is not an honorary title given by random: It is a long and precise process, regulated by the Catholic Church for centuries. It has not been enough that a person who has long been loved or admired for some time: it must be demonstrated with authentic testimonies that he experienced Christian virtues in a heroic way, who has left a fame of holiness and, often, that miracles have occurred thanks to his intercession. The path is made of stages: Servant of God, venerable, blessed and finally holy.
Who can be holy and what must be done: the appointment as a servant of God
The first saint in history was Santo Stefano. But what does this word mean? The word “holy” indicates something sacred, inviolable or dedicated to God, and for the Catholic Church it is “the one or the one who on the example of Jesus Christ, animated or animated by love, lives and dies in the grace of God”.
Anyone can become a saint, even without having particular gifts or skills. The first spark is the fame of holiness. It is the widespread belief that that person has experienced faith authenticly, with an integral and generous life. Whoever knew him remember his positive influencegood works, the Death lived as a testimony of faith. If this fame grows and resists over time, the Church can open the process.
The first stage of the process is the diocesan phasein which the bishop officially opens the investigation, and the person is called Servant of God. From here begins a meticulous job: the postulator It collects documents, writings, testimonies, and a local court, together with historians and theologians, check if it has lived the virtues in a way heroic.
How holiness is reached: the venerable, blessed, saint process
Once the file in the diocese is closed, everything moves to Rome, to Dicastery of the causes of the saints.
Here is prepared the Positivea sort of “dossier” that tells the candidate’s life and virtues. Consultants theologians, cardinals and bishops examine it: if the judgment is positive, the Pope proclaims the candidate Venerablerecognizing that he has lived faith, hope, charity and other Christian virtues in an exceptional way.
To become blessed, two conditions are needed: if the person (who must necessarily be deceased) is a martyr, beatification is immediate; otherwise, a recognized miracleusually rapid and inexplicable healing according to science. Doctors and theologians analyze the case: alone If it is truly inexplicable, it is approved. From that moment, Blessed can be publicly venerated in its diocese or community.
The final step for holiness – after death, and having accomplished a miracle – is the canonizationand for it you need a second miraclewhich took place after beatification.
With this act, the Pope officially proclaims the new Holy and proposes it as a universal model of Christian life. At one time the popular acclamation was enough to proclaim a saint. But since the 16th century the church has set precise rules to avoid abuse. To give pepper to the process there is also the role of the so -called “Devil’s lawyer”that is, the promoter of the faith, which has the task of checking every test with rigor, looking for flaws and contradictions.
The special cases: John Paul II and beyond
However, the causes follow the standard path.
Exists theequivalentwith which the Pope can recognize a cult that has been spread for some time without waiting for miracles. Or there are extraordinary dispensewhen the pontiff decides to speed up the times. That’s what happened with John Paul II: died in 2005, his cause of beatification was opened by Benedict XVI after a few weeks, without waiting for the five years scheduled. His process has remained one of the fastest in modern history, thanks to fame of planetary holiness that he had left. Another special case is that of John XXIII, proclaimed saint by Pope Francis without the second miracle requested, precisely because of his fame recognized all over the world.
Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati: the two new saints
The recent canonization of Carlo Acutis And Pier Giorgio Frassatiwhich took place on 7 September 2025 under the pontificate of Pope Leo XIV, shows how much holiness can speak to our time. Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925) He lived the faith with a social commitment, helping the poor and combining spirituality and daily life. His motto “upwards” has become a symbol of a Christianity that looks far away, with his feet well planted in reality. Carlo Acutis (1991-2006), passionate about computer and football, used the Internet to spread the Eucharistic miracles, becoming a model of Holiness in the digital era. As Pope Leo XIV said in St. Peter’s Square, they are two “Saints next door“, Close to the new generations and capable of saying that holiness is not far away, but within everyone’s reach.
