Born in 1991 in London and raised in Milan, Italy, Carlo Acutis has been described as “a normal teenager” with a knack for computers. What was unique was his intense devotion to the Eucharist. He had his first Holy Communion at the age of 7. He was convinced that people wouldn’t be able to stay away from Mass if they knew about the dozens of Eucharistic miracles recognized by the Church. So at age 11, he began to research – leading his parents from shrine to shrine to take pictures for a website that he built and which still remains active: www.miracolieucaristici.org. The content is featured in a traveling exhibition that will be featured at the Diocese of Charlotte’s 2025 Eucharistic Congress on Sept. 5-6.
Acutis has become known as an innovative Catholic influencer for his use of technology and art, and his example has caught on. Three teenage brothers in Ireland created a stop-action Lego animation film about his life. An artist from Assisi created two mosaic portraits out of 1,000 toys each – one is housed in the Vatican’s youth center and the other in Blessed Carlo Acutis Parish in northwest Chicago. A bronze statue by Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz that stands outside his tomb in Assisi features him in jeans and a sweatshirt, wearing a backpack and holding his laptop.