Postponed due to Pope's death The first "Influencer of God" is canonized
The Italian teenager Carlo Acutis died of cancer in 2006. Today, the Church wants to canonize the "Influencer of God". However, the date has now been postponed due to the death of Pope Francis.
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- Carlo Acutis is to be canonized as the first "influencer of God" or "cyber apostle". The Italian teenager died of leukemia in 2006.
- This has now been postponed due to the death of Pope Francis. But the decision itself remains.
- There are now more than 10,000 saints. Francis alone was responsible for almost 1,000.
On Corso Giuseppe Mazzini, in the center of Assisi, they are already ready: the first figures of Carlo Acutis with halos are already being sold in the souvenir stores of the tourist town. The Italian teenager died of leukemia in 2006. An ordinary boy in jeans, sneakers and a red polo shirt - but now with a golden ring over his head. The price: 45 euros per copy.
This puts the traders in the home town of St. Francis of Assisi a little ahead of the Roman Catholic Church: In the Vatican, Carlo Acutis, who was only 15 years old, was not due to be canonized until next Sunday. This has now been postponed due to the death of Pope Francis. But the decision itself remains.
The son of a wealthy family will then become the first saint from the millennial generation - in other words, one of the people born between 1980 and 1999. He would actually be just 33 now.
The Vatican attaches great importance to the admission of the Italian to sainthood. Francis actually wanted to do this personally next Sunday, especially as he had honored the eight centuries older saint from Assisi (since 1228) with his choice of name.
Miracle database and rosary program
In the official announcements, the life of Carlo Acutis reads like it was made to reintroduce younger people to the Catholic faith: a "little computer genius", an "influencer of God", a "cyber apostle", a "saint of our time". Acutis was born in 1991 in London, where his father worked in the financial world, and was baptized there. Shortly afterwards, his father got a new job in Milan. The family still has a vacation home near Assisi, in the middle of Umbria.
According to the story, it was mainly through his nanny that Carlo found his way to faith at an early age. He received his first communion at the age of seven. He later went to a Jesuit school, where he wrote computer programs for the church, designed websites and created a database of supposed miracles. He installed a rosary program on his laptop. He was also in charge of his parish's website.
He told his mother that he was thinking about becoming a priest. He allegedly warned friends not to go to porn sites. He himself is said to have claimed: "The only woman in my life is the Virgin Mary."
Then, at the beginning of October 2016, he was diagnosed with acute leukemia, the really bad kind. Shortly afterwards, he fell into a coma. On October 12, he was dead. Soon after, the path to sainthood began, supported by the church and his parents. His body was reburied several times, from a village cemetery to the pilgrimage church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Assisi. Last year, a million people went there, including many school classes.
The dead boy lies in a sarcophagus with a glass pane
His mortal remains now lie in a sarcophagus with a glass pane through which you can look inside. The dead boy is wearing jeans and sneakers. A rosary has been placed in his hands. The face and hands have been modeled with silicone. Opposite is a stone bench for visitors who want to stay longer. But most of them pass by rather quickly. Photography is prohibited.
Beatifications and canonizations follow a complicated, multi-stage process. The lives of the candidates are examined in detail. In the past, this began at the earliest 50 years after death. Today it sometimes happens very quickly. As a rule, a miracle must be attributed to the potential saint. In the case of Acutis, the competent Vatican authority assessed the healing of a child from Brazil and a young woman from Costa Rica in this way. The Pope agreed.
The elevation to sainthood is a tradition. The holy apostles (eleven only, Judas Iscariot not included), St. Nicholas, St. Martin, St. Barbara and Hildegard of Bingen are remembered from religion lessons. More recently, Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II have been added to the list. There are now more than 10,000 saints. Francis alone was responsible for almost 1,000.
A guilty friend sows doubt
For some, the process of becoming a saint is now very fast. There are also doubts about whether Acutis was really so pious. One of his best school friends, Federico Oldani, told the weekly newspaper "The Economist" that he never once spoke to Carlo about Jesus. Oldani also never heard him say the phrase "The Eucharist is my highway to heaven", which is now universally attributed to his dead friend.
Which doesn't change the fact that many in Assisi are already earning good money with the new saint. Almost everything is on sale in the souvenir stores: jute bags, T-shirts, medallions, pendants, rosaries, even fridge magnets. There are also figurines of him in the sales room of the church where Acutis now lies. The rector of the parish, Franciscan Father Marco Gaballo, says: "People want something they can remember. Then that's fine with me."
However, money is now also being made online with the first saint of the Internet age. Supposed relics are on offer on websites. A lock of hair allegedly from Acutis was recently sold for 2,110 euros. That was too much for the church. The Bishop of Assisi, Domenico Sorrentino, filed a criminal complaint. Now the public prosecutor is investigating.
