Carlo Acutis – The Millennial Saint

Carlo Acutis, touted as the “first Millennial saint,” showed remarkable devotion to the Holy Eucharist at a time when most boys his age would be chasing worldly pursuits. In his early teens, he created a website on Eucharistic miracles, still in use today, before God called him home in 2006, at the tender age of 15.

Family and Early Childhood

Carlo Acutis was born in 1991 in London, to a wealthy Italian couple who moved to Milan, Italy shortly after his birth. His parents had him baptized but were themselves inactive Catholics who did not take him to church. He was largely raised by au pairs of various nationalities and faiths. One, a Polish Catholic, may have had an influence on feeding his faith. Another, a Hindu, asked to receive baptism because of his faith.

 

Not Your Typical Boyhood

Like other boys, Carlo was interested in sports, video games, music and computers. Unlike others, he was passionate about the rosary, the Eucharist, protecting kids from bullies and delivering meals to the homeless. He began dragging his parents to church first weekly, then daily. Having taught himself computer coding, he developed a website cataloging all known Eucharistic miracles, a site that can still be visited today at MiracoliEucaristici.org.

Image:  The Eucharistic Miracle of Santarém‎, by Arquidiocese de Braga.  License: CC-BY-3.0

Final Days

In October 2006, when he was only 15, Carlo got sick with what was first diagnosed as an inflammation of the throat, but which turned out to be caused by leukemia. Carlo, urging his parents and friends not to fear death which was, for him, a doorway to God, offered his suffering for Pope Benedict XVI and the Church. Only 3 days after his diagnosis, Carlo died from a cerebral hemorrhage. According to a desire he’d expressed before his death, his body was transferred to Assisi in 2019. The next year he was beatified by Pope Francis, and he is scheduled to be canonized in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, April 27, 2025.

Biography by Dr. Italy

Image:  Bl. Carlo Acutis’ grave and kenotaph in the Santa Maria Maggiore Church in Assisi, by Dobroš.  License:  CC-BY-SA 4.0

Banner image (top) courtesy of www.carloacutis.com.