Blessed Carlo Acutis’ feast day is coming up on October 12
Like St. Therese of Lisieux and St. Joseph, it is a must for Catholic children to become acquainted with this holy friend of God!
Wondering
Here are a few practical reasons WHY Blessed Carlo is a must for Catholic children to become acquainted with:
1. Carlo lived from 1991-2006 so his life shows us that great holiness is not in some distant historical time. It is important to learn about these saints (and, at Holy Heroes, we do a great job telling their stories in a developmentally appropriate way, if I do say myself!) BUT I found Carlo’s story refreshing because he is so relatable to children. It can happen here and now in the lives of children!
2. Carlo shared many experiences with your children’s day-to-day life. He used modern technology, had “screentime,” spent time with peers who did not understand Catholicism, and played sports after school. Your child will be able to relate to this saint in very concrete ways.
3. Carlo had to navigate video games and social media. He committed to moderating his use–and asked his mom to help hold him accountable! Get this book specifically to give your child a holy peer to influence their screen use.
4. Carlo moderated his use, but also saw the incredible opportunity that technology presented to evanglization! When he was a teen, Carlo used modern technology to spread God’s truth by creating a website documenting Eucharistic miracles, which people can still learn from today. It is so inspiring for children (and adults!) to hear about other young people who have such a wide-reaching impact.
5. Carlo reminds us all not to fall prey to frittering away time. Wasting our time is really a modern-day scourge (not as much opportunity for time-wasting during most of human history). With the comforts and security of living in the modern world come the dangers of endless scrolling and aimless pursuit of leisure, which can be a serious vice that can weaken our friendship with God. Carlo was very mindful of how he used his time, and before his death at 15 years old, Carlo said: “I am happy to die because I have lived my life without wasting a minute on those things which do not please God.” WOW. This is definitely a sentiment I hope my children take with them as they grow older (and something I continue to attempt to aspire to as well).
We have lots of Carlo Acutis products (I especially recommend our middle-grade biography about Blessed Carlo–read this incredible review HERE).
Our Glory Story about Blessed Carlo was the first one I introduced my daughter to and even at 4 years old, she LOVED it.
For adults, make sure you check out this book about Carlo’s short life written by his mother!
Pro tip: Get this Complete Carlo Set to use part for his feast day and save the rest for Christmas gifts!
Virginia has her M.A. in Counseling and currently works as a therapist at a Catholic counseling agency, specializing in working with children (and their parents), teenage girls, and mothers. She also gets some very “hands-on” experience parenting her two young children – who have become Holy Heroes fans!
As the eldest of the “Adventure Guides,” she has played a big part in developing so many Holy Heroes products and adventures. She wrote the scripts for lots of “Adventure” videos, as well as writing and directing the first “Inside the Sacraments” video (The Holy Eucharist). She wrote Glory Stories Volume 8, “Best-loved Catholic Prayers and Prayers of the Mass,” and Volume 13, “Secrets from Heaven – The Story of the Children of Fatima” (her favorite!). Most recently, she co-created the Holy Heroes Spiritual Adoption Adventure with her former college roommate. She continues to enjoy blogging for Holy Heroes.
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