GREENPOINT — When nervous about her final exams at St. John’s University this past spring, Grace Lugo sought a little heavenly help by praying for the intercession of then-Blessed Carlo Acutis.  

Her devotion to him will grow even stronger now that he has been canonized, she said. 

“Now that the day has come and he’s canonized, it just feels like a big celebration,” Lugo said. “Maybe I never met him before, but he is my friend. I have a friend who’s now an official saint.”  

On Sept. 7 — the day St. Carlo Acutis and another man, St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, were canonized — Lugo was at San Damiano Mission Church in Greenpoint attending a Mass organized by the Diocese of Brooklyn for young people to celebrate the two new saints. 

At San Damiano Mission, a parish the diocese established in 2015 to serve young adults in the Greenpoint/Williamsburg area, there is great hope that the two new saints will bring more young people into the Catholic Church. 

In particular, St. Carlo Acutis (1991-2006) can attract members of Gen Z because he was a tech-savvy teen, Lugo said. Shortly before he died in 2006, he launched The Eucharistic Miracles of the World, a website that drew a lot of attention. 

RELATED: Diocesan Youth Find Inspiration in Blesseds Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati

“One thing about Carlo Acutis is that he is almost like this influencer for God before we even had social media,” she explained. “And also there’s really a lot of young people who are growing in the faith. A lot of it is because of social media.  

“He’s kind of our patron.”  

St. Carlo Acutis’s age and the fact that he lived in the 21st Century is also an important calling card because it makes it easier for young people to relate, Lugo said.  

“Wait a minute. I thought saints were from the medieval period, from the Renaissance period. This guy who was 15 years old? He’s a great example that sainthood is possible at our age,” she said.  

Barbara Freitas, apostolic coordinator for San Damiano Mission Church, said the fact that St. Carlo Acutis and St. Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925) lived normal lives can serve as an inspiration. St. Carlo Acutis, for example, loved soccer. And St. Frassati, who worked with the poor in Turin, Italy, was a man who smoked cigars and enjoyed having a good time with friends. 

“They are testimonies for us that we can like things in the world, like sports, and we can be normal people. And being normal people, we can make the most of that,” Freitas said. “We can let God’s grace dwell in that and help us be creative on our evangelization.  

“I really have a lot of hope.”  

RELATED: For Brooklyn Teen, Carlo Acutis’ Sainthood Is Personal

Father James Kuroly, director of youth and young adult ministry for the Diocese of Brooklyn, who celebrated the Mass, said the two saints are already having an impact.  

“We’ve already seen it. I think that we see among the youth in our diocese that they are alive and vibrant for the faith, and very much the saints that come to mind of inspiring these young people are the two saints that were canonized this morning,” he said.  

While much of the attention surrounding the canonization has focused on St. Carlo Acutis, Mike Delouis brought a relic of St. Frassati to the Mass.  

“I’ve heard stories about him opening his door and if there was someone begging at the door, he would give them his shoes. That was something that really touched me and inspired me,” Delouis said.