A high place in heaven
A short while after Saint Carlo Acutis died, his mother, Antonia, said that she had a dream about her son. In the dream, St. Francis Assisi appeared to her and told her, “Your son, right now, occupies one of the highest places in Heaven, and after he is beatified, there will be a whole new generation of saints, thanks to him.”
I’d like you to imagine yourself in a different realm now, passing along on a street. You’re not alone; there are people around you everywhere, moving, shifting, traveling in all directions. As you walk, you begin to recognize certain sensations and feelings around you. Although you can’t see them, their presence alone reveals them to you, and you can name them. Joy has just appeared, and Faithfulness, and as you walk, there will be more. You greet them and can name these, too, as they approach: Peace, Patience, Goodness and Kindness, Generosity, Modesty. They are familiar to you, from somewhere deep in your being. All welcome, all welcoming.
They slip into the space around you as you journey on, seeking more. They have surrounded you with their presence, and now, Gentleness and thoughtful Chastity arrive, and as you name them, you begin to understand that around the corner, Love and Self-Control were waiting, now moving in step with one another to greet you. You feel whole and happy, and you begin to emanate the same. And the love that you are feeling joins the love that is already in the air. You are walking in this sacred space, and it is heavenly.
You have been walking the path of Carlo Acutis. Carlo was a young man who, on his own, found the way to open the door to our Living God. Carlo's heart was consumed by the desire for everyone to know the importance of staying close to Jesus. His deep understanding of fundamental Catholic teaching about sacraments, intuitively centered around the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist, is paramount to understanding the gift this child has given to the world.
Carlo tells us that Jesus is, YES, a living God, and that we can find Jesus there, in the tabernacle, waiting to greet us. And he wonders, “Why aren’t people lining up to visit Him?” Carlo understood that the sacraments bring us food that nourishes us and strengthens our relationship with Jesus. The Eucharist, along with all other sacraments, leaves us with the stamp of God on our hearts, formed by grace. Carlo shows us that by frequenting the sacraments, we can remain close to our Triune God, always.
With Saint Carlo’s help, we can all follow this same path. And our world will change. And that, certainly, merits a high place in heaven!
Therese Rossi, Whiting Companion