Italy moved by teen who offers life for the Church and the Pope

Rome, Italy, Oct 24, 2007 / 13:22 pm

In October of 2006, Carlo Acutis was 15 years old and was fading fast from leukemia.  A native of Milan, Acutis touched family members and friends with his witness of offering the sufferings of his illness for the Church and the Pope.  His testimony of faith, which could lead to his beatification in the coming years, has moved Italy. 

“The Eucharist: My Road to Heaven: A Biography of Carlo Acutis” is the title of the book by Nicola Gori, a writer for the L’Osservatore Romano, and published by Ediciones San Pablo.

According to the publishers, Carlo “was a teen of our times, like many others.  He tried hard in school, with his friends, [and] he loved computers.  At the same time he was a great friend of Jesus Christ, he was a daily communicant and he trusted in the Virgin Mary.  Succumbing to leukemia at the age of 15, he offered his life for the Pope and for the Church.  Those who have read about his life are moved to profound admiration.  The book was born of a desire to tell everyone his simple and incredible human and profoundly Christian story.”

“As a little boy, especially after his First Communion, he never missed his daily appointment with the Holy Mass and the Rosary, followed by a moment of Eucharistic adoration,” recalls his mother, Antonia Acutis.

“With this intense spiritual life, Carlo has fully and generously lived his fifteen years of life, leaving a profound impact on those who knew him.  He was an expert with computers, he read books on computer engineering and left everyone in awe, but he put his gift at the service of others and used it to help his friends,” she added.

“His immense generosity made him interested in everyone: the foreigners, the handicapped, children, beggars.  To be close to Carlo was to be close to a fountain of fresh water,” his mother said.

Antonia recalls clearly that “shortly before his death, Carlo offered his sufferings for the Pope and the Church.  Surely the heroism with which he faced his illness and death has convinced many that he was truly somebody special.  When the doctor that was treating him asked him if he was suffering a lot, Carlo answered: ‘There are people who suffer much more than me!”

Reputation for holiness

Francesca Consolini, postulator for the causes of the saints at the Archdiocese of Milan, thinks there is reason to open Carlo’s cause of beatification when the required wait of five years after his death has been met.

“His faith, which was unique in such a young person, was pure and certain.  It made him always be sincere with himself and with others.  He showed extraordinary care for others; he was sensitive to the problems and situations of his friends and those who lived close to him and were with him day to day,” Consolini explained.

Carlo Acutis “understood the true value of life as a gift from God, as an effort, an answer to give to the Lord Jesus day by day in simplicity,” she went on.  “I should stress that he was a normal boy who was joyful, serene, sincere, and helpful and loved having company, he liked having friends.”

“After his death many felt compelled to write down their own remembrance of him, and others say they are going to ask for his prayers,” Consolini said.

For more information on the book, written in Italian, visit
http://www.libreriauniversitaria.it/eucaristia-mia-autostrada-cielo-biografia/libro/9788821560385