Saint-Joseph hosts an exhibition on the life of Carlo Acutis

On Sunday October 20, 2020, Catholics around the world received their new “Blessed” when a 15 year old teenager, the Servant of God, Blessed Carlo Acutis, was officially beatified.

Carlo Acutis was born in 1991 in London, although Milan was the family home. While his family was not particularly religious, Carlo displayed personal devotion from a young age. He developed a deep appreciation for the Eucharist, faithfully attending Mass and receiving Communion daily. He used to spend time in silent meditation before or after mass. He also had a personal devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Like many teenagers, Carlo had his dreams and his ambitions. He had a strategy: “Always be close to Jesus,” he told his friends, “This is my plan.

For anyone who knew him, he was a normal, well-balanced teenager. He had an engaging and outgoing personality, with a genuine concern for others. At school, he paid special attention to disabled classmates and defended them against bullies. He was not afraid to speak or act in the name of truth and charity.

Carlo attended a Jesuit high school in Milan, and it was there that he developed his passion for computers, technology and the Internet. He recognized the potential of the Internet and developed a website: Eucharistic miracles of the world. He started the project at the age of 11. The Eucharist was his “road to heaven” and the Scriptures were his “compass”. We remember him saying: “All people are born as originals, but many die as photographs. He was determined not to become a photographer.

Carlo contracted leukemia and died on October 12, 2006. He was buried in Assisi, the home of his beloved Francis, as he himself had requested.

Thanks to the efforts of the St. Joseph-Bishop Baldwin Council of the Knights of Columbus, an exhibit which details the life and investigations of Carlo Acutis, in particular the database of Eucharistic miracles that he developed, will be presented in the gymnasium of St. Joseph Parish on Saturday November 13 from 3 pm to 7 pm and Sunday November 14 from 8 am to 7 pm. This is the first time that this work will be exhibited in Nassau County. Everyone, especially teenagers, is welcome.