Revealed: How the mother of millennial saint Carlo Acutis held hundreds of London churchgoers mesmerised with ‘electric’ speech on how the teenager lived to spread kindness
A London priest last night told how Carlo Acutis’ mother captivated as many as 700 churchgoers with an “electric” speech about her son’s message of love.
Father Dominic Robinson predicted that London-born Carlo, who died in 2006 aged 15, will become a “saint for the millennials” by attracting a new generation of young believers.
The pastor of Farm Street Church of the Immaculate Conception in Mayfair, central London, heard Carlo’s mother Antonia Salzano address his congregation last summer.
He said it was standing room only, while she said he was a regular teenager who lived to spread kindness by helping others.
“It was standing room only,” he said. “There were a lot of young people in their twenties and younger.
‘The atmosphere was really electric. You really got the sense that people were being brought to faith and spirituality, with a commitment to something very tangible in this young man’s life.”
Carlo (pictured) was a devout Christian when he was alive and attended daily mass
Carlo’s mother Antonia Salzano (pictured) refers to her late son as her “savior” as Carlo continued to teach her more about his faith and credits him with her conversion to Christianity
Carlo (photo) was first raised by an Irish nanny and then by a Polish one. They claim that he was inspired in part by Saint Francis of Assisi, who was born in the same city where Carlo was buried
Cardinal Agostino Vallini, center, in the Basilica of St. Francis in Assisi, Italy, during the beatification ceremony of Carlo, one of the steps towards canonization
“It was the millennial generation of committed Catholics, who also brought their friends because they were really inspired by the life of this young man from the millennial generation,” Father Robinson said.
‘He stood for something that was completely against the culture and yet was very much part of the culture.
“As we heard from his mother in the evening, he was computer literate and spent a lot of time online.”
Father Robinson added that the congregation was touched by the fact that Carlo was as vulnerable as they were and had been born in the town where they lived.
‘I think Carlo was bullied at school, he was born and baptized in central London.
“There’s definitely something about being local: someone you know, someone who grew up in the same place as you and went to school in the same place.”
But he said that even while the saint-to-be was alive, those around him felt his life would serve a much greater purpose.
‘When he became ill, there was a strong feeling that this life was not the only thing that was important. There was a dimension beyond that.
“He was very devoted to the Catholic faith: adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, prayer and adoration.
‘At the same time he did a lot of volunteer work and worked with the homeless. So he put his faith into action. He was kind to others.
‘He stood for authenticity and integrity and an eye for the weakest.
“So in a sense he really knew Jesus as his brother, as his friend, as the one he adored.
“Also the one who gives us a blueprint for life, which goes against many of society’s values.”
Father Robinson added: ‘There is a lot of talk about the fact that Christianity and organized religion are in decline.
‘But there are green signals and signs of real enthusiasm among young people. They are looking for something that goes against the ethics of wealth creation and careerism.”
Carlo (pictured) would be only the second Briton to be canonized in almost fifty years, after Cardinal John Henry Newman was declared a saint last year
Carlo (pictured as a baby) was also an incredibly smart young boy; he spoke his first word at three months old, started talking at five months old, and wrote at four.
Carlo also helped the homeless and stood up for bullied classmates at school. In the photo: young Carlo with his dog at Christmas
Carlo Acutis was photographed smiling at the camera while wearing an AC Milan home kit from the 1990s
Nearly twenty years after Carlo’s death, Pope Francis has recognized a miracle attributed to Carlo – after he had died – in which the mother of a Costa Rican woman involved in a serious bicycle accident prayed at his glass coffin and left a note asking for her to be cured in 2022.
That same day, her daughter started breathing on her own and 10 days later she was released from the intensive care unit because the bleeding in her brain had completely disappeared.
Pope Francis has now done that signed a decree paving the way for Acutis to become a saint, as the Vatican says Carlo also intervened from heaven in 2013 to heal a Brazilian boy suffering from a rare pancreatic disease.
When Carlo died shortly after being diagnosed with leukemia, he told his parents, “I’m glad I’m dying because I lived my life without wasting a minute of it doing things that would not have pleased God .’
Carlo died in Monza, Italy after moving to Milan as a child, but was born in London to mother Antonia Salzano and father Andrea Acutis.
His mother said her son dedicated himself to supporting classmates who were struggling with life, defending disabled friends who were being bullied and distributing meals to the city’s homeless.
Since his death, Carlo has gained a worldwide following and his body was moved to the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, Assisi, where it is currently on display.
He has been nicknamed “God’s Influencer” and “the Patron Saint of the Internet” for his dedication to promoting Christ’s work online before he died.