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Carlo Acutis, a 15 year old Italian schoolboy who died of leukemia in 2006, may well become the protector of web surfers, according to Cardinal Angelo Becciu, the head of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
“That’s my hope — he would be an ideal example for all young people,” said Becciu.
As Acutis’ fame has spread, Catholics have started to pray to him, and in February, the pope attributed a miracle to the teen.
The miracle in 2013 involved the rapid and inexplicable healing of a 6-year-old Brazilian boy suffering from a congenital deformation of the pancreas after a priest had prayed to Acutis for him.
This triggered his beatification, the first step toward being made a saint.
The beatification ceremony will be held on October 10 in the Italian city of Assisi, where Carlo is buried.
Using the family’s small, old computer, Acutis taught himself how to program and built a website cataloguing miracles around the world.
He used his prodigious coding talent to set up websites for priests.
At the age of 10, he began to create an online exhibit about religious miracles, which has gained massive popularity since his death.
Acutis also supported classmates who were bullied and helped the homeless.
His mother, Antonia Salzano, said that, in many ways, her son was a typical teenager who liked playing video games, but one who also had “a special spiritual life and gifts on the internet.”
Last year, Pope Francis paid tribute to Acutis, declaring that his use of the internet to “communicate values and beauty” was the perfect antidote to the dangers of social media.
In a document he wrote after a synod on youth, Francis quoted a phrase coined by Carlo warning other youngsters not to lose their individuality on the internet: “Everyone is born an original, but many die like photocopies.”
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