Under the direction of Romain Lizé, President, Magnificat Editor, Magnificat: Isabelle Galmiche Editor, Ignatius: Vivian Dudro Translator: Magnificat- Ignatius Proofreader: Kathleen Hollenbeck Layout: Magali Meunier Production: Thierry Dubus, Audrey Bord Original French edition: Raconte-Moi la belle histoire de Carlo Acutis © 2024 Groupe Elidia, Éditions Artège – Le Sénevé, Perpignan and Paris © 2025 by Magnificat, New York • Ignatius Press, San Francisco All rights reserved ISBN MAGNIFICAT 978-1-63967-157-1 • ISBN Ignatius Press 978-1-62164-829-1 To our children—Karol, Joseph, and Raphaël— our nephew Théodore, our niece Marie-Thaïs, our godchildren, and all children, that they may grow in holiness at Carlo’s school of life. Marie and Jean-Baptiste Maillard Illustrated by Clémence Meynet
13 • Mary, the Only Woman in His Life..........................................49 14 • Teaching Holiness............................53 15 • God Loves All. ..................................56 16 • Eucharistic Miracles.........................60 9 • A Food-Loving Family. ...................36 10 • Among Friends. ...............................39 11 • Caring for Others.............................42 12 • Rajesh. ..............................................45 5 • Nature and Animals........................22 6 • The Poor, Carlo’s Friends................25 7 • A Love of Sport. ...............................29 8 • “I’m going to Mass. Are you coming with me?”............ 33 17 • Summer 2006..................................64 18 • Sick....................................................67 19 • Who Are All These People?............71 20 • Saint!.................................................74 1 • His Name Is Carlo............................. 6 2 • The Polish Nanny.............................11 3 • Nonno and Luana............................14 4 • Carlo’s First Communion. ...............19 Contents
t’s a boy!” the midwife said as she placed the crying baby in his mother’s arms. Antonia and Andrea were elated. They looked with joy at their baby snuggling with his mother. Their first child! He was so cute, with his little tuft of brown hair and his soft skin. He was a big baby, 22.5 inches long! His young parents were in awe. “What’s his name?” the midwife asked, smiling at them. “His name is Carlo,” the baby’s father answered. The midwife wrote on the birth certificate that Carlos Acutis was born on May 3, 1991, at 11:45 a.m., at the Portland Clinic in London, England. His Name Is Carlo All are born as originals, but many die as photocopies. “ - 1 - Andrea was proud to be a dad. There were so many things he wanted to teach his son, so many topics he wanted to discuss with him someday. Although they were living in London, Carlo’s parents were from Italy. To honor the family tradition back home, they wanted Carlo baptized in a Catholic church even though they did not go to Mass regularly. “I went to see the priest,” Antonia told Andrea happily, “and he said that Carlo could be baptized on May 18th. Our entire family will come from Italy! I’ll buy a cake for the celebration afterward. My mother is so excited; Carlo is her first grandchild!” Antonia loved to shop, and she bought lots of clothes for baby Carlo— far too many clothes, more than he could ever wear! She ended up giving some of them away. Her next priority was preparing for the Baptism and getting ready to welcome family members from Italy. A few days later, when Antonia was on her way to Harrods—a big department store in London—she stopped at a bakery. All the cakes looked so good! Should I get a chocolate cake? she wondered. Or this one with cream and fruit? Then she saw a beautiful cake in the shape of a lamb. Pointing to it, she said to the clerk, “I’ll have that one with cream filling and white icing!” Everyone will like it, she thought. Jesus was called the Lamb of God; it’s perfect for a Baptism! At Harrods, Antonia bought a stuffed animal in the shape of a lamb. She couldn’t resist its soft white wool, and its eyes expressed such gentleness. She knew it was perfect for Carlo; he was a cute little lamb himself! When she got home, she put it in his crib. For the first few days, Carlo cried and had trouble falling asleep at night. But his father, Andrea, lulled him to sleep by pacing up and down the living room and singing over and over: “Banga, binga, bongo, bungo.” Carlo always fell asleep in his father’s arms. On May 18, 1991, at the Church of Our Lady of Sorrows on Fulham Road in London, the whole family gathered for the big day. The priest said: “Carlo, I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit!” Carlo’s grandmother Luana—his godmother—was overwhelmed; she took Carlo in her arms and embraced him. Carlo’s paternal grandfather— J 7
Suddenly there was a cry. “I think Carlo is hungry,” Luana said with a smile. Carlo’s mother picked him up and gave him his bottle. “See how he eats!” Luana exclaimed. “He’s going to love his grandma’s pizzas!” Everyone laughed. Carlo, who had been looking at his mother with big eyes, fell back to sleep. his godfather—took the baby’s baptismal candle and lit it from the Easter candle. Then the priest told the parents and godparents to keep the light of Christ burning in their lives and in the life of Carlo. The celebration after the ceremony was joyful. The family was happy to be together and to share the delicious cake. “What a perfect cake for a Baptism,” said the priest. “Jesus was like an innocent lamb. And we must learn to be like him. I want Carlo to be that sweet lamb in the image of Jesus.” THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE OF SAINT CARLO ACUTIS HIS NAME IS CARLO
n September 1991, Carlo’s parents moved back to Milan, Italy. Antonia joined the family publishing business, and Andrea worked for an insurance company. They decided to hire nannies to take care of Carlo, and that’s how Nanny Beata joined the Acutis family. The young Polish woman introduced herself with a thick accent. “Hello, Carrrlo. My name is Beata. I’m very happy to be taking carrre of you, and I’ve brrrought something for you.” Carlo looked at the nanny’s bag with bright eyes. What could this mysterious present be? “Look!” she said, holding up a picture of Our Lady of Czestochowa. “This is the Mother of Jesus!” And she gave the holy card to Carlo. “Isn’t she beautiful? I’ll teach you to prrray to her.” The boy took the precious card in his hands and looked at it with a smile on his face. Carlo was a curious child. When he was around three years old, he asked his nanny to tell him about Jesus. “Jesus is God,” Beata explained, “and he loves us with all his hearrrt.” “He loves us?” Carlo asked. “Then I want to love him too!” When Beata started taking Carlo to Mass with her, he wanted to know many things. “Why do you stand up, sit down, and kneel down?” he asked. “What is the white bread that you go to eat at the front of the church? I’d like to have some too!” “Carrrlo, Carrrlo, you’ll learrrn all this in time,” Beata replied. “The brrread I receive is Jesus, but you can’t receive him until you make your Firrrst Communion.” The Polish Nanny To always be close to Jesus ; that is my life plan. - 2 - J 11
Carlo was disappointed. Beata took him into her arms and said softly, “You’ll be able to make your Firrrst Communion soon!” The boy smiled and was happy again. Beata gave Carlo a beautiful wooden rosary and taught him how to pray with it. Excited, Carlo ran to show his mother. “Mom, look what Beata gave me!” he said. “It’s so beautiful, and I know how to use it! Beata taught me: You say the Hail Mary on the small beads and the Our Father on the big ones.” One morning, Beata, Antonia, and Grandmother Luana went to the supermarket. Carlo was in his stroller, cuddling his stuffed lamb. He loved the toy and took it with him everywhere. As Antonia and Carlo waited for Luana and Beata outside the store, a little girl barely taller than Carlo came by. She was very pretty, with red curly hair and big eyes. She threw Carlo the blue ball she was holding in her chubby hands. When Carlo didn’t react, she yanked the blanket off his legs. As Antonia gently picked it up, Carlo gave the little girl a big smile. She stuck out her tongue in response, and Carlo continued to smile. Then the little girl shrugged her shoulders and walked away. When Beata and Luana returned, Antonia told them what had happened. “I’ve trrried to explain to Carrrlo that he has to defend himself!” Beata said. “In the parrrk, he lets the other kids take his toys. And when I scold him and tell him that it’s imporrrtant to show some strrrength, Carlo replies: ‘Jesus wouldn’t be happy if I got mad.’ What do you think?” Antonia started to laugh, and when Carlo heard his mother, he started to laugh too. The way home was joyful. One day, Carlo was playing with Legos. He loved to build things. He made a house and a small car. Then he took them all apart to make a rocket, the biggest rocket possible! He was very focused, but he could hear his mother and Beata talking about their summer plans. “Are you going on vacation to Poland, to see your family?” Antonia asked Beata. “I can’t; it’s too expensive. I’ve decided to stay in Milan with my son, Konrrrad. We’ll go for nice walks.” THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE OF SAINT CARLO ACUTIS After Carlo got ready for bed that evening, he went to his parents, who were reading in the living room. Carlo sat next to his father and asked, “Could we invite Beata to stay with us in Cilento?” The Cilento Coast was where the family would be spending their summer vacation. “I‘m not sure,” Andrea replied. “She might have other plans.” “No, I heard her talking to Mom. She is staying here. It would be so fun if she came! I would have a friend to play with! Come on, say yes ... please!” Carlo looked at his parents with pleading eyes. Antonia and Andrea looked at each other. He was so adorable, they couldn’t resist him. “We’ll ask her!” Andrea said. Carlo threw himself into his father’s arms. “Thank you, thank you!” THE POLISH NANNY 12 13
“I think we’ve lost,” said Nonno. “Our castle wasn’t indestructible after all.” “It wasn’t,” Carlo replied. As he lay back on his towel in the sun, Carlo watched the sea come closer and closer. “Nonno?” he asked. “Yes, my boy?” Nonno replied. “Nothing is stronger than the sea, is it?” “My child,” said Nonno, “everything on earth is passing: strength, beauty ... Everything is passing away.” Carlo was on vacation with Nonno and Luana, his grandparents. Together they went to the beach. “What do you want to do, Carlo?” Nonno asked. “I want to build the strongest sandcastle ever!” Carlo replied. Carlo fetched buckets of seawater to mix with the sand, and he and Nonno began to build the towers together. Luana looked on with amusement. As the castle grew higher and higher, it stood strong against the gentle waves lapping at its sides. Carlo was determined— his castle would not crumble! As the tide rose and bigger waves hit the walls, Nonno and Carlo added more sand, first on one side and then on the other. When a tower fell, Carlo built another one to replace it. But in the end, the sea won. Carlo and Nonno had to admit defeat. Nonno and Luana Our goal must be the infinite, not the finite. The infinite is our homeland. Heaven has been waiting for us forever. - 3 -
arlo’s love for Jesus grew over the years. During their walks, Antonia had noticed that Carlo always stopped in front of churches. One day, looking straight into his mother’s dark eyes, six-year-old Carlo asked, “Mom, shall we go inside? I just want to say hello to my friend Jesus.” Antonia followed her son into the church to learn about this mysterious friend who was hidden in the tabernacle behind the altar. The little red flame meant that Jesus was there. The two knelt in a pew, and Antonia watched as her son closed his eyes and grew still. With a smile on his lips, the boy spoke silently to his friend. Antonia could feel it. God was there, touching her son’s heart. After a long moment, Carlo turned to his mother. “Have you finished praying, Mommy?” he asked. “Yes, Carlo, I have,” she replied. “Then shall we continue our walk?” Outside, Carlo told his mother how much he wanted Communion: “Can you imagine, Mom, what it means to be united with Jesus? Jesus is really there in the Host! I can’t wait to receive him, to feel him coming down into me! It must be incredible.” Carlo’s desire to receive Communion grew, and he often talked about it with his parents and Beata. In their parish, however, children received their First Communion at nine or ten years old. Carlo would have to wait a few years. Every Sunday, Antonia saw how disappointed Carlo was not to receive Communion. She and her husband spoke to a bishop they knew, Pasquale Macchi, and he came to see Carlo. Carlo’s First Communion To be always united with Jesus, this is my plan of life. - 4 - C 19
If you obtain any graces, please let us know at: mmaillard@lightsinthedark.info You can also visit the page dedicated to Carlo’s miracles at: www.miraclesdecarlo.com Since then, many more miracles have happened. We invite you to ask Carlo to intercede with Jesus with the following prayer: O God, Our Father, thank you for giving us Carlo, an example for the young and a message of love for everyone. You made him enamored with Your Son, Jesus, making the Eucharist his “Highway to Heaven.” You gave him Mary, as a most loving Mother, and, with the Rosary, you made him a poet of her tenderness. Receive his prayer for us. Above all, gaze upon the poor, whom he loved and helped. Grant for me too, by his intercession, the grace that I need ... Thank you for placing Carlo among the saints of your Church, so that his smile may shine again for us in the glory of your name. Amen. (Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be)
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