Relics of St. Carlo Acutis spent their final day in the Columbus diocese on Feb. 18, Ash Wednesday, at the Columbus St. Thomas More Newman Center, adjacent to Ohio State University, home of Buckeye Catholic.
Six Ash Wednesday Masses were celebrated, four at the Newman Center and two in Performance Hall at the Ohio Union on campus. A 5:45 p.m. Mass at the Newman Center had an estimated 860 attendees.
First-class relics of St. Carlo, including his pericardium (tissue surrounding the heart), a lock of hair and a piece of the bedsheet that collected his blood, sweat and tears were exposed in the Newman Center for public veneration. A piece of Carlo’s favorite t-shirt, considered a second-class relic, was also present.
Veneration was offered throughout the day from 1 to 8 p.m. in the Newman Center chapel.
Relics of the Church’s first millennial saint (1991-2006) spent six days in the Columbus diocese before heading west to California. They spent the previous day at Hilliard St. Brendan the Navigator and Worthington St. Michael the Archangel schools, drawing hundreds of students to venerate.
Evening public veneration at St. Michael drew more than 3,000 individuals, with faithful waiting in line until 11:30 p.m.
The relics spent a significant amount of time in Ohio, touring the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and Diocese of Toledo before coming to Columbus.
They are traveling with Msgr. Anthony Figueiredo of Assisi, Italy, who was assigned by the late Pope Francis to look after them. St. Carlo is buried in Assisi and was canonized last September.
The beloved saint is renowned for creating a website documenting Eucharistic miracles across the world before his death at age 15. He had devotion to the Eucharist, attending Mass daily and spending much time in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.
While many of today’s college students were born shortly before or after Carlo’s death, his relatability and devout faith continue to inspire the next generation.
Michael Szczepaniak, 19, entered the world when the saint left. The Ohio State University freshman was born Oct. 12, 2006, the day Carlo died.
“He … has a pretty special connection to me,” Szczepaniak said.
Beyond their shared connection, Carlo inspires the Ohio State student to live a devout life of faith.
“His love for the Eucharist encouraged me to be like, maybe I should put more time into going to Adoration with the Exposition (of the Blessed Sacrament), so I’ve been doing that a lot more,” he said.
“I can actually be in the presence of the Eucharist more often because, back at home, I can’t, and I was working all the time, but now I have the opportunity to do this every day.”
Adoration is regularly offered at the university Newman Center Monday through Friday from 8:15 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Daily Mass is also celebrated twice per day at 7:45 a.m. and 5:45 p.m.
Carlo is a prime example for many students, such as Isaac Denlinger, 19, a freshman at Ohio State. Venerating the saint’s relics near campus was a unique opportunity for him.
“I think it’s super special,” he said. “I look up to him because he was such a young saint, so I’m super excited.”
Often dubbed the “patron of the internet,” Carlo was not unlike other teenagers, enjoying video games and time on the computer.
“He only spent an hour on technology a week, and I kind of take that to heart with the world that we live in, where it’s so centered on technology,” Denlinger reflected.
“Almost everything runs through our phones, or our watches, or what have you, but he was able to live a life without (lots of) technology, and it was a great life, obviously, because he’s a saint, so I look up to him for that.”
Several students lined the chapel’s communion rail after the 5:45 p.m. and before the 8 p.m. Masses for a blessing with the reliquary containing Carlo’s relics.
