Assisi chaplain wants devotees of Carlo Acutis to calm down. "Carlo's wish that he wanted to be buried here in Assisi is respected. But that's still an open question"
Assisi chaplain advises more serenity during Carlo Acutis veneration
"Leave everyone free"
The so-called "cyber apostle" Carlo Acutis died as a teenager in 2006 and is scheduled to be canonized on September 7th. This has also drawn criticism. Brother Thomas Freidel, pilgrim chaplain in Assisi, calls for more serenity.
DOMRADIO.DE: Following the death of Pope Francis on April 21st, the cardinals postponed the canonization ceremony from April 27th indefinitely. How important was it for the faithful to have a new and concrete date soon?
Brother Thomas Freidel OFM (pilgrim chaplain in Assisi): This was very important to many people here, including our Bishop of Assisi. He is very involved in the Carlo Acutis cause. The bishop pushed for the canonization to take place soon, saying that there are still plenty of opportunities for it during the Holy Year.
That is now the case. He will be canonized together with Pier Giorgio Frassati. He was also still a young man when he died. But that was quite a while ago. He died during the First World War and was also socially committed. So it's a good fit.
We will be prepared for a large influx of visitors. We would have done the same in April. We have set up an altar outside the basilica especially for this and other occasions so that we can celebrate mass there with many large groups. The tomb itself is located here in the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore. But it's small and quite cramped, so not much can take place there.
DOMRADIO.DE: Carlo Acutis is, as you say, buried in the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Assisi. There is a glass coffin in which he lies, wearing jeans and sneakers. It has since become a place of pilgrimage; millions of people have been there. Why is he buried in Assisi?
Brother Thomas: Firstly, Carlo himself venerated Saint Francis. He was able to convince his parents early on to buy a house here, where they spent their weekends and holidays. The family actually lives in Milan.
When his illness broke out, it was his wish to be buried here in Assisi. He died almost within a few days of an aggressive form of leukemia.
The family bought a crypt in the municipal cemetery at the time, and he was buried there for the first few years. Then a veneration arose around Carlo.
Beatification or canonization is not something that is decreed from above. What is important is that members of the people of God continue to remember and venerate him. These were, of course, his former schoolmates and friends, as well as several others. That's how things got rolling. It was the idea of the local bishop, in agreement with the family, that the grave be moved to the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore.
However, given how things have developed, the location in this Church is unfavorable. Larger groups cannot go there together. But whether there will be another solution in the future remains to be seen.
DOMRADIO.DE: Now he is to be canonized on September 7th. Aren't you worried that this will put too much strain on Assisi and the region?
Brother Thomas: Absolutely. There are already concerns and critical voices regarding the city itself, because the old town in Assisi is small and narrow. The road that runs past the Maria Maggiore Church, for example, is one of the last remaining thoroughfares here, and it carries all the traffic. All the people who live here have to pass through here, as do deliveries for the inns and so on.
Brother Thomas Freidel
"Of course, Carlo's wish that he wanted to be buried here in Assisi is respected. But that's still an open question."
We'll have to see how things develop and how different decisions might be made in the future. Of course, Carlo's wish that he wanted to be buried here in Assisi is respected. But that's still an open question.
Cathcon: Does he mean they might just move the body not from the Church but also to a new town?
DOMRADIO.DE: In 2006, Carlo lost his battle with cancer when he was just 15 years old. Less than ten years later, he was canonized. Only Mother Teresa and John Paul II have achieved that. Critics complain that this is far too quick and that Acutis is far too young for canonization. They suspect that the Church is pushing this because, as a young man, he is such a suitable role model. How do you respond to this criticism?
Brother Thomas: Of course, there are concerns when things happen so quickly. But one should view all of this with a certain calmness. It is clear that the canonization was promoted by some influential people within the Church – including in Rome – and that the family supported it. The mother, in particular, is very involved and gives many lectures.
She herself said that she rediscovered her faith through her son. It is indeed a rare phenomenon. In recent Church history, there are only two cases where the parents are still alive: Thérèse of Lisieux and Maria Goretti.
Brother Thomas Freidel
"Carlo had a special religious gift. Above all, he saw, understood, and lived the entire spectrum of Christianity."
But there are always critics and supporters. Carlo had a special religious gift. Above all, he saw, understood, and lived the full spectrum of Christianity: the spiritual component with prayer, the rosary, Eucharistic adoration, and also the very classic Catholic piety in its various forms, but also the other, the charitable. He helped many people.
His mother always tells the story of the day of his funeral, how they came to the church and the church was filled with people – mostly the needy, beggars, the homeless, and the poor, whom Carlo helped. Carlo therefore understood what being a Christian means in the broadest sense.
I hope that these ecclesiastical-political trench warfare doesn't always start immediately, with one group or another somehow appropriating it. Many people today are also alienated by the way Carlo's relics are treated. But with some things, I would ask them to find out more about them and find out what they mean.
Some things are immediately labeled as macabre. But everything else that happens in our society and what we see every night on television or read in the media sometimes seems macabre or funny to no one.
DOMRADIO.DE: You're referring to this heart relic that toured Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium last fall. Isn't that a bit strange?
Brother Thomas: It may or may not be for someone. Everyone should be given freedom. No one is obligated to venerate or appreciate it. It doesn't have to be part of everyone's religious life.
But that's a Catholic principle: If it helps us get closer to the mystery we call God, then it's good. And those who don't need it, those who aren't helped by it, are in no way compelled to do so.
I've been living abroad for almost 20 years and now look at Germany with a somewhat different perspective. I recommend a bit more serenity in some things.
DOMRADIO.DE: Can a 15-year-old be a role model of faith for adults who are significantly older? Is he a role model of faith for you personally?
Brother Thomas: He died during the phase of youthful enthusiasm for faith, which we may all have experienced in a similar way. This makes me think, and I ask myself what I was like at that age? What did I think about faith? He lived very strictly and consistently. For me, he's not as current a role model of faith as he is for young people today. That's definitely not the case.
For me, however, the question is more how do I carry on what I lived with enthusiasm as a young person? Where has my opinion changed? Where have I perhaps moved forward and made progress in a certain sense? That's more my thought.
For many parents and grandparents, Carlo also serves as a kind of comfort figure for their own children and grandchildren who are no longer believers. We often hear this in our conversations here, because many parents and grandparents experience this disappointment: They have lived their faith, passed it on to their children and grandchildren, and yet nothing develops; they even reject it. He is also a figure of longing in this relationship.
.jpeg)
Comments