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Friends of the Rosary,
Today, we celebrate the memorial of St. Carlo Acutis (1991-2006), the First Millennial Saint. He was a Catholic Italian teenager, a gamer and computer programmer who loved soccer and the Eucharist, and, as Pope Francis described him, a model of holiness in a digital age. Today, he is the patron Saint of youth, the internet, and computer programmers.
Acutis, Carlo Acutis was born May 3, 1991, in London, though his family moved to Milan shortly after. From a young age, Carlo had a special love for God, even though his parents weren’t especially devout. His mom said she had been to Mass only for her First Communion, her confirmation, and her wedding, but young Carlo’s unique and unexplained devotion led to her deep conversion.
The priest promoting his cause for sainthood noted that Carlo “managed to drag his relatives, his parents, to Mass every day. It was not the other way around; it was not his parents bringing the little boy to Mass, but it was he who managed to get himself to Mass and to convince others to receive Communion daily.”
He had a gift for empathy and was known for defending kids at school. He tried to stay disciplined and play games for only an hour a week, even though he really wanted to play more. He had a great devotion to Mary and loved to pray the rosary.
He was fascinated by Eucharistic miracles. Using his research, he began creating what would eventually become a website on this topic. Carlo was concerned by people growing distant from the Church and the sacraments. He said, “The more often we receive the Eucharist, the more we will become like Jesus, so that on this earth we will have a foretaste of heaven.”
At age 15, Carlo was diagnosed with an untreatable leukemia. “I offer all the suffering for the Lord, for the Pope, and the Church.” Carlo died from his illness on Oct. 12, 2006.
At his request, he was buried in Assisi because of his love for St. Francis. His tomb has been opened, and his intact body lies in repose in a glass tomb where he can be venerated by pilgrims. He is displayed in jeans and a pair of Nikes, the casual clothes he preferred.
“For the first time in history we will see a saint dressed in jeans, sneakers, and a sweater,” said the rector of the Sanctuary of Spoliation in Assisi, where Acutis’ tomb is located. “This is a great message for us; we can feel holiness not as a distant thing but as something very much within everyone’s reach because the Lord is the Lord of everyone.”
Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino of Assisi said, “Carlo is a boy of our time. A boy of the internet age, and a model of holiness of the digital age.”
Also, today marks the beginning of the Jubilee Year of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which will conclude on October 12, 2027. Pope Leo XIV declared a Guadalupan Jubilee Year to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the dedication of the new Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City.
Ave Maria!
Come, Holy Spirit, come!
To Jesus through Mary!
Here I am, Lord; I come to do Your will.
Please give us the grace to respond with joy!
+ Mikel Amigot w/ María Blanca | RosaryNetwork.com, New York
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