Initially, Fr. David Bellusci, O.P. was simply interested in learning about Pier Giorgio Frassati’s journey toward joining the Third Order of Saint Dominic and why he is “Blessed.” 

It is fair to postulate that the assistant professor of philosophy and religious studies at Catholic Pacific College in Langley, B.C., could not have foreseen the late Italian Catholic activist (1901-1925) — slated for canonization on Aug. 3 — becoming a lasting wellspring of inspiration and scholarly fascination.

Bellusci will host a Jan. 23 lecture called “Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati: Truth and Friendship” at Calgary's St. Mary’s University starting at 7 p.m. local time. This talk, the newest installment of the postsecondary institute’s Inspiration Unplugged series, is the latest of many presentations on Frassati that Bellusci has delivered over the past decade. The Dominican Order’s vocations director for Vancouver and Western Canada also released a book in 2020 called Pier Giorgio Frassati: Truth, Love and Sacrifice.

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The 64-year-old educator, writer and priest began examining the figure Pope John Paul II once called the “Man of the Beatitudes.” He first reviewed the previous scholarship about the late young adult but broke novel academic ground by visiting Frassati’s surviving niece, Wanda Gawronska of Pollone. He reviewed the Frassati archives and was invited to pray in the oratory dedicated to the late Dominican.

Gawronska also bestowed Bellusci with her late uncle’s letters to family and friends and also assessed his book. She provided sage insights about her uncle, drawn from what she heard from her mother, Luciana Frassati Gawronska, who passed away at age 105 in 2007, that helped this biography transcend mere speculation and outsider interpretation.  

In an interview with The Catholic Register days before his talk, Bellusci said he wants attendees to consider Frassati a compelling example of “holiness as being something concrete.” The man who lived the whole of his all-too-short life (he died of polio) in Turin manifested his faith concretely through a passionate commitment to the sacraments and community outreach.

“The first reflex he had was to live out his faith in a very sacramental sense,” said Bellusci. “We know for a fact that he went to regular confession and (he) received regular communion. This is clear in his letters. What is also very clear is that he reached out to the poor. Even though he is a full-time student, he would go out into the slums and (meet) the poor. He talked to them, brought them medicine and whatever he could.”

Frassati attended the Istituto Sociale, a private school established by the Jesuits in 1881, as a teenager, and then pursued a degree in mining engineering at the Polytechnic University of Turin.

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At the tender age of 21, the undergraduate student joined the Third Order of Saint Dominic because he wished to better emulate the life example of the order’s founder, who lived from 1170-1221. He also contributed to Catholic Action and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.

Frassati’s zeal, reflected through his service and letters, was mostly moulded through his own desire to draw closer to God, said Bellusci. Though his parents, Alfredo and Adelaide, instilled virtues within him, Bellusci emphasized that the father was agnostic and his mother was “not a deeply religious woman.”

“Something that I learned from him is how we can receive good things from others and then we can go much further than what we have received,” said Bellusci.

July 4 will mark a century since Frassati’s passing. He ultimately has come to be revered as a globally recognized patron for youth and young adults. He was named one of 13 patron saints for the 2023 World Youth Day in Lisbon. Suitably, his canonization will occur on the final day of the Jubilee of Youth (July 28-Aug. 3) in Rome.

Frassati was also known for loving the outdoors. He went mountaineering and swimming with friends. A subject he broached in his letters, said Bellusci, was how you could enjoy entertaining pursuits without becoming beguiled by paganism.

“He makes it very clear that you can be a virtuous person, you can have friends and enjoy yourself with your friends without succumbing to these worldly temptations, vices and sins,” said Bellusci.

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The Jan. 23 lecture in St. Mary’s University’s McGivney Hall will feature Bellusci speaking about the letters and material from his book. The B.C. priest will also share photos he took while visiting the Turin area several times over the past 15 years.

Visit https://stmu.ca/ for more information.