For the first time, a millennial has been beatified. Carlo Acutis, who died of leukemia in 2006 at the age of 15, is also referred to as the Cyber Apostle in Italy.
Commissioned by Pope Francis, Italian Cardinal Agostino Vallini beatified the teenager in Assisi yesterday. Acutis spread his faith extensively on the internet. He used his passion for computers to build Catholic websites and thus spread the gospel.
After his early death, Acutis became a role model for young believers. Acutis’ body received a balm treatment. A silicone mask was applied to his face. The boy from Milan was buried in Assisi at his own request.
It takes a miracle to be saved. The Vatican found this for Acutis in Brazil. A child with a rare pancreatic abnormality was “miraculously” recovered there in 2013 after his family prayed to Acutis.
Acutis’s beatification was already scheduled for June but had to be postponed due to the corona pandemic. The teen’s grave was opened ten days ago. Many believers went to the Basilica of St. Francis to pray by the boy’s embalmed body.
According to observers, Pope Francis addresses the youth again with the beatification, whom he has warned several times in the past about the dangers of the internet and fake news.
