Carlo Acutis became the first Millennial to be beatified in 2020. He would be celebrating his 30th birthday this May 3 if leukemia hadn't claimed him when he was 15 years old.
But Bl. Carlo continues to inspire others, especially young people, trekking through the challenges of daily life.
MICHAEL LICHENS
Editor of Catholic Exchange
“The thing that made him extraordinary was that he was very good at sticking to the ordinary. He attended confession at least weekly. He would try to go for daily Mass and receive the Eucharist as often as possible. And it was in that devotion to the Eucharist, especially through St. Francis of Assisi, that I think the secret to holiness really comes out.”
Michael Lichens is the editor of Catholic Exchange and a spokesman for Fr. Will Conquer, author of “A Millennial in Paradise,” a book about the young Blessed and his path to holiness.
MICHAEL LICHENS
Editor of Catholic Exchange
“He compares Bl. Carlo to a painting by Caravaggio that you can find in Rome, which is the 'Calling of St. Matthew,' where Christ is clearly a first-century Palestinian Jewish person, but the room and all the people, they're dressed in the style of Caravaggio at the time, which is Renaissance, Swiss Guard-type uniforms.”
This Caravaggio painting, Fr. Will explains in the book's introduction, represents the relevance of Jesus' teachings to every era. For Fr. Will, Bl. Carlo's life is yet another reminder that Christ's call to St. Matthew to follow Him “also meets us where we are” today.
In “A Millennial in Paradise,” Fr. Will tells the story of the young “computer geek” who used his ordinary love for technology and his extraordinary love for the Eucharist to create a website cataloging every reported Eucharistic miracle in the world.
MICHAEL LICHENS
Editor of Catholic Exchange
“It's hard not to be inspired. It's hard not to be like, 'Ok, how do I become a better Catholic, compared to this young man? How do I get there?' And that's what drove [Fr. Will] to write this book, originally in French, and now in English, to introduce more people to Bl. Carlo and to hopefully introduce people to a new friend who can help them along the spiritual path.”
The book draws on testimonies from Carlo's friends and relatives to show how the Italian teenager lived out the seven virtues and how Christians today can follow in the footsteps of the young man who could become the first Millennial saint. The English edition of the book will be released in June.
CT
