Winnipeg Catholics can pay tribute to ‘saint in sneakers’

WHEN Carlo Acutis was made a saint by Pope Leo XIV on Sept. 7, John Paul Marable was very excited.

“We need him more than ever,” Marable said of the Roman Catholic Church’s first millennial saint.

“He’s an example of who we are called to be,” added the third-year education student at the University of Manitoba. “His same desire for the Eucharist and for Christ can live in all of us.”

Marable, a member of the St. Alphonsus parish in East Kildonan, is also excited for another reason; from Sept. 17-29, he will join other Catholics in the province in seeing and venerating a relic of the newly canonized saint who loved playing video games and going to mass.

“I’m looking forward to seeing it, and through it looking to Christ,” he said. “Even after his death, St. Carlo is still evangelizing people today.”

St. Carlo’s relic — a lock of his hair — will be available for viewing and veneration at parishes in Winnipeg during that 13-day period. It will be part of a presentation about the life of the so-called “saint in sneakers,” who used the internet to promote his love for the Eucharist and Jesus before dying of leukemia at age 15 in 2006.

Before someone is declared a saint by the Catholic Church, two miracles must be performed. A child in Brazil who recovered from a pancreatic deformation was declared Carlo’s first miracle. The church paved his way to sainthood last year by declaring a second miracle — the healing of a Costa Rican student in Italy from major head trauma in a bike accident after her mother prayed at Carlo’s tomb.

The presentation in Winnipeg will be given by Louise Normandeau of Valleyfield, Que., a close friend of Carlo’s family in Italy. Normandeau’s visit has been organized by Gabrielle Marion, a member of the Saint Eugene parish, with the support of the Saint Boniface and Winnipeg archdioceses.

“His message of hope is so important for youth and adults today,” said Marion, a retired nurse. “It really spoke to my heart.”

Marion’s hope is that the presence of the lock of hair — considered a first-class relic in the Catholic Church, since it is an actual part of the saint’s body — will rally local Catholics.

“I’m praying that seeing it and praying to St. Carlo will produce a revival of love for Christ and his presence in the Eucharist,” she said, adding she hopes it will also prompt more Catholics to return to worship services in various parishes.

“During COVID, people stopped coming. I hope this makes them want to come back to be in the presence of Christ, that seeing it kindles a fire in their hearts,” she said.

The relic and presentation will be offered in St. Malo on Sept. 17, before visiting Winnipeg, St. Norbert, Île-des Chênes and St. Anne. The presentations will be in French, except on Sept. 27, at the Saint Boniface Cathedral and Sept. 28 at a special youth and young adult event at Mary, Mother of the Church.

For more information, including locations and times, visit archsaintboniface.ca

faith@freepress.mb.ca

The Free Press is committed to covering faith in Manitoba. If you appreciate that coverage, help us do more! Your contribution of $10, $25 or more will allow us to deepen our reporting about faith in the province. Thanks! BECOME A FAITH JOURNALISM SUPPORTER