SSVP presentation Newmarket Part2

“A Vincentian Look at Sainthood”

Introduction

On Sept 7, 2025, two young men were named saints by the Catholic Church;
Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati.

Carlo Acutis

Carlo Acutis was born May 3, 1991, in London, where his father was working. Just a few months later, he moved with his parents, Andrea Acutis and Antonia Salzano, to Milan, Italy.

 Carlo was diagnosed with leukemia as a teenager. Before his death in 2006, he offered his sufferings for Pope Benedict XVI and for the Church, saying: “I offer all of my suffering to the Lord for the pope and for the Church in order not to go to purgatory but to go straight to heaven.”

Carlo is particularly remembered for his love of God and the Eucharist from a young age. He had a special love for God, even though his parents weren’t especially devout. Antonia Salzano, his mom, said that before Carlos, she went to Mass only for her first Communion, her confirmation, and her wedding. 

As a young child, Carlo loved to pray the rosary. After he made his first Communion, he went to Mass as often as possible at the parish across from his elementary school. Carlo’s love for the Eucharist also inspired a deep conversion for his mother. It is said that he “managed to drag his relatives, and his parents to Mass every day.”
In most cases today, the parents are dragging their children to Mass.

Carlo’s faith was expressed not only through prayer and attending Mass but also through acts of charity. He helped the homeless and defended children who were bullied. A remarkable example is when he returned home during a storm without his shoes—he had given them to a homeless person.

He used to say, ‘There are queues in front of a concert, in front of a football match, but I don’t see these queues in front of the Blessed Sacrament’ For him the Eucharist was the center of his life.” Carlo’s witness of faith led to a conversion of a Muslim friend of his parents. Love and concern for the poor can be seen in how he interacted with the homeless man who would sit at the entrance of the church. He would bring Tupperware dishes filled with food out to people living on the streets.

He defended Church teaching. Carlo was not afraid to defend Church teaching, even in situations when his classmates disagreed with him. Many of Carlo’s high school classmates remember Carlo giving a passionate defense for the protection of life from the moment of conception when there was a classroom debate about abortion.

He stood up for the vulnerable. Carlo was a faithful friend. He was known for standing up for kids at school who got bullied, especially kids with disabilities. When a friend’s parents were getting a divorce, Carlo made a special effort to include his friend in the Acutis’ family life. With his friends, he spoke about the importance of going to Mass and confession, human dignity, and chastity.

Carlo was a computer whiz. Carlo was fascinated with computer coding and taught himself some of the basic coding languages. He used his computer skills and internet savvy to help his family put together an exhibition on Eucharistic miracles that has gone on to be displayed at thousands of parishes on five continents. His spiritual director has attested that Carlo was personally convinced that the scientific evidence from Eucharistic miracles would help people to realize that Jesus is really present in the Eucharist and come back to Mass.

He balanced fun with faith. Carlo loved playing video games. His mother recalls that he liked the Nintendo Game Boy and other games. He had conversations with his gaming buddies about the importance of going to Mass and confession and limited his video game playing to no more than two hours per week. Carlo also liked Spider-Man and Pokémon. Acutis has been described as the "first gamer saint.”

Carlo died on Oct 12, 2006 and was beatified in 2020. He asked to be buried in Assisi, Italy. His body lies in repose in a glass tomb in Assisi where he can be seen in jeans and a pair of sneakers.

At least two miracles are attributed to Carlo’s intercession. The second miracle attributed to Carlo’s intercession involved the healing of a 21-year-old girl from Costa Rica named Valeria Valverde, who was near death after seriously injuring her head in a bicycle accident in 2022. The first miracle that led to his beatification involved the healing of a 3-year-old boy in Brazil in 2013 who had been diagnosed with a malformation of his pancreas since birth.

His tomb has become a pilgrimage site. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims from around the world have visited Carlo’s tomb since his canonization was announced. His remains rest in the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Assisi, the home of St. Francis and St. Clare.

Conclusion

Part of Acutis' popularity has been linked to how easily young people can identify with him, symbolized in the red polo shirt he is often shown wearing. He was an everyday with an extraordinary faith.

Carlo is the first canonized millennial, a living sign that holiness is not reserved for distant centuries or cloistered monasteries. His life testifies that sanctity is attainable for young people immersed in the complexities of the modern world, and that even the tools of our age—computers, smartphones, the internet—can become instruments of grace when placed at the service of the Gospel.

What lessons, then, does Carlo offer us? First, he reminds us that holiness begins in the ordinary: in the classroom, on the soccer field, at the dinner table, and yes, even online. Second, he challenges us to place our gifts and talents—whatever they may be—at the service of God and neighbour. Third, he teaches us the redemptive value of suffering, showing us that even the most painful trials can be transformed into an offering of love. And finally, he calls young people, in particular, to a life of authenticity: to live the faith with joy, simplicity, and courage in a world that often dismisses or ridicules belief.

The Church proposes him as a model for all the faithful. His life is a reminder that sanctity is not a relic of the past but a living reality possible here and now. His witness is an invitation to live with greater devotion, greater purpose, and greater love.

Famous quotations

“Each person reflects the light of God.”

“The Eucharist is my highway to heaven.”

“When we face the sun we get a tan… but when we stand before Jesus in the Eucharist, we become saints.”

Acutis video with narration. 1 minute

https://www.facebook.com/reel/788844110306916?fs=e&s=TIeQ9V&fs=e&fs=e