Who is Carlos Acutis?

Photo from Carlo's personal website here.

A fifteen-year-old Milanese youth, deeply devoted to Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii.

Carlo died at the age of fifteen due to leukemia, although it was only diagnosed days before he died.  In this he reminds me of Blessed Pier Giorgio, who died of polio, although no one knew he was so seriously ill.  Like Pier Giorgio, Carlo had overflowing crowds of mourners at his funeral.  I think his story is very important for youth and young men especially - who need solid examples of authentic Catholic spirituality.  I believe Carlo's witness demonstrates that holiness is indeed attainable in our anti-Christian, hedonistic culture.  A maxim from Carlo states: "You must want it (holiness) with all your heart, and if this desire has not arisen in your heart, you must ask for it with insistence from the Lord."  His example affirms for me that fidelity to the duties of one's state in life is the ordinary means to sanctity.


 'The Eucharist is my highway to Heaven!'

"He is remembered by those who knew him for the enthusiasm with which he conveyed to others his love for God and the neighbour. At seven he did his First Communion and since then, every day, he has never missed the daily appointment with the Holy Mass, the Eucharistic Adoration and the Holy Rosary. The focus of Carlo’s spirituality was the daily encounter with the Lord in the Eucharist: he said It 'was Jesus truly present in the world, as at the time of the Apostles the disciples could see him in flesh and bones walking on the streets of Jerusalem'. Carlo often repeated: 'The Eucharist is my highway to Heaven!' This is the summary of his spirituality and the core of his whole existence spent in friendship with God.

"Carlo was very fond of the Virgin of Pompeii, where he came dozens of times, accompanied by his parents, and where each time he renewed his act of consecration to Mary. He used to say: 'The Madonna is the only woman of my life!', and he never missed 'the most loving appointment of the day', which was for him the prayer of the Holy Rosary.

"Some days before Carlo was led to the hospital, when no one suspected that he had leukaemia which in a few days brought him to the grave, he told his parents: 'I offer all the suffering I will have to suffer to the Lord, for the Pope and the Church, for not to do Purgatory and go straight into Heaven'. The heroism with which he dealt with his illness and death convinced many people that really there was something special in him. When the doctor who followed him asked him if he suffered a lot, Carlo replied: 'There are people who suffer much more than me'.

"A continuous pilgrimage held a wake for his body. His funeral was attended by a crowd so immense that many were forced to remain outside the Church. The continuing testimonies, letters, stories, which still today arrive at the postulator of the Cause of Beatification, Dr. Francesca Consolini, appointed by the Curia of Milan, tell of an extraordinary young boy, blessed by grace, so much that the Archdiocese of Milan thought to propose him as a model for the young and to start the process in view of the introduction of the Cause of Beatification which, as you know, may begin 5 years after death. It results, in fact, that so many are those who ask the intercession and the aid of Carlo.

"From the testimonies collected a few days after his death, one discovers that Carlo was completely dedicated to the welfare of the people he met. He helped everyone: non-Community immigrants, beggars, disabled persons, elderly people, children. He was worried about his friends whose parents were divorcing and invited them to his house to support them; in the classroom he always took the defences of those who had more difficulty to integrate. On more than one occasion he defended the disabled that were taken around by frivolous boys.

"With great courage he defended the Christian values, even if this sometimes caused him misunderstandings. His professor of religion at the high school recalls that in a discussion in the classroom Carlo was the only one to oppose abortion.

"He had a great view of all persons and was concerned about how many wasted the talents that God had given them. On more than one occasion he affirmed: 'All are born with their own originality, but many die as photocopies'.

"This intense spirituality did not prevent him from having a normal life, common to that of his peers." - Source  
 

"Remember to pray the Rosary every day."

- Carlo Acutis

H/T Miraculous Rosary Blog