“In front of the sun, you get a tan. In front of the Eucharist, you become a saint!” (St Carlo Acutis)

Míle Buíochas to Bishop Coll for his visit last Sunday to celebrate the 11am mass. With the whole church, we the Parish of Castlecomer, rejoiced at the declaration by Pope Leo of the canonisation of Carlo Acutis. What a wonderful celebration in St Peter’s Square in Rome where Carlo’s family participated in the celebration during which Carlo was officially pronounced a saint by the Church. How strange it must have been for them to witness their son and brother elevated to the company of saints – their son and brother who lived in their house, worked on their computer, celebrated birthdays and Christmases: an ordinary teenage boy who lived an ordinary life Thanks to all who participated here in Castlecomer. We now will transfer the relic of St Carlo Acutis to the Community School and will joyfully welcome it back to the Parish Church during school holidays. Speaking in his homily in St Peter’s Square Pope Leo XIV remarked that “Carlo, for his part, encountered Jesus in his family… and then at school, and above all in the sacraments celebrated in the parish community. He grew up naturally integrating prayer, sport, study and charity into his days as a child and young man”. He quoted St Carlo: “In front of the sun, you get a tan. In front of the Eucharist, you become a saint!” And again: “Sadness is looking at yourself; happiness is looking at God. Conversion is nothing more than shifting your gaze from below to above; a simple movement of the eyes is enough.” Referring also to Pier Giorgio Frassati, who was declared a saint with Carlo, Pope Leo XIV said that both young saints are an invitation to all of us, especially young people, not to squander our lives, but to direct them upwards and make them masterpieces.