Chiara was 19. Thérèse was 24. Maria was 11. Imelda was 11. Francisco was 10. Jacinta was 9. Philomena was 13. Carlo was 15.
Our Church is full of young saints. These are just a few of them! Yesterday, Carlo Acutis, an Italian teenager, was beatified by the Church. He is an extraordinary example of love and devotion for young people everywhere! You can find out more about Carlo's life here.
All of these Saints and Blesseds were very young when the entered Heaven. They are extraordinary examples of virtue and love, but they were also just normal kids! Chiara loved sports and singing. Carlo was a computer genius (and he's also buried in a hoodie, which is amazing) None of these young people lived their lives doing extraordinary things. Their holiness was attained by their everyday lives, by works of charity, and by surrendering everything to Christ.
So what do these amazing people have to teach us? Holiness is possible. It's possible for you, for me, for everybody. We can't be afraid of the world. Yes, it's crazy sometimes, but God is bigger and better than that. Life with Christ should be our biggest goal. Everyday life is not an excuse to not pray and not live out our faith, rather, it's an opportunity to do so even more!! Extraordinary virtue does not have to be only for the mystics and the theologians. We can become saints by sitting in a classroom, by playing soccer, by laughing with our friends, by doing chores. When Christ is the center of our lives, everything we do becomes a prayer. Every single action of our lives is helping us to become saints! These young people knew that and lived it out, which is why they are the Blesseds/Saints that they are today!
Holiness is possible. Sainthood is possible. Yes, we are young, but our age does not define who we are! Jesus does. Our culture often looks down on our young generations as immature and irrational, but those assumptions do not need to be true. If you are a young person reading this blog right now, just know that You can be a saint! You can be holy! Jesus will help you to do both of those things! Do not let another moment go by without doing something to show that Sainthood is your goal. You are capable and you are worthy of becoming a saint. Offer your life to Jesus as a gift. God created us. He loves us. If we could not become saints, we wouldn't have been placed on this earth. So, in the words of Saint Pope John Paul II, "It is Jesus who stirs in you the desire to do something great with your lives!!" This desire for sainthood that you are feeling is real! Jesus wants it for you too! None of us, no matter our age, are too young for sainthood.
Blessed Imelda Lambertini, Blessed Carlo Acutis, Blessed Chiara Badano, Saint Therese of Lisieux, Saint Maria Goretti, Saint Jacinta, Saint Francisco, Saint Philomena, All the amazing young saints, PRAY FOR US!!
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