-
(In the afternoon, the Holy Father flew to Pollone, and prayed in the cemetery at the tomb of the Venerable Pier Giorgio Frassati for 20 minutes. Afterwards, he addressed the local people.)
O.R.n.31, July 31 1989
I
A short while ago I went to the tomb of Pier Giorgio Frassati, your illustrious townsman. It is also for him that I have come; I wanted to pay homage to a young man who was able to witness to Christ with singular effectiveness in this century of ours. (...)
I, too, in my youth, felt the beneficial influence of his example and, as a student, I was impressed by the force of his Christian testimony.
I should like to underline particularly his works in the Conference of St Vincent de Paul, and in Catholic Action, of which he remains one of the most fascinating exponents. The particular clarity of his testimony springs from his radical adherence to Christ, from his transparent fidelity to the Church, from the generosity of his missionary work. He offered to all an example which, even today, has lost nothing of his magnetic attraction. I wish everyone, especially the young, to draw inspiration and encouragement from his short but radiant life of consistent Christian witness.