Opening Reflections
How remarkable it is that, from such a young age, the desire of Carlo Acutis for himself and others was that we become saints! His short yet intense life of just fifteen years, spanning two centuries and crossing the threshold of the second millennium, shows how he fulfilled this desire for himself, and how he has provided a road map to holiness in our times for us all and for young people especially. The French novelist, Léon Bloy, writes: “The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.” This is the unwavering call that the Church makes to all people throughout the ages. It comes from Jesus himself, who ends his most important and longest of teachings – the Sermon on the Mount – with the call to his disciples to “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). Through his Paschal Mystery – his suffering, death, resurrection and ascension – Jesus gives us the grace to be perfect through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. In the centuries that followed, the Fathers 11
b. Blessed Carlo Acutis B776.indd 11
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