A RELIC of an Italian teenager beatified by Pope Francis is returning to Ireland this week, with visits to Derry and Newry.
The relic of Blessed Carlo Acutis will be taken to St Eugene’s Cathedral in Derry on Thursday before being moved to the Marian Shrine in Knock, Co Mayo the following day.
On Saturday, the relic will move to St Anne’s Church in Sligo, before being taken to Newry Cathedral on Sunday.
The relic is a fragment of the heart membrane of Carlo Acutis, a 15-year-old London-born Italian youth who died of leukemia at the age of 15 in 2006.
He was known as a website designer who documented Eucharistic miracles online, and was known for his acts of kindness and religious devotion while battling his illness.
In 2020, the teen became the first millennial to be beatified by the Catholic Church, and his relic was previously brought to Ireland in June, where it was taken to St Paul's Church in west Belfast's Falls Road and St Patrick's Cathedral in Armagh.
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Belfast church welcomes relic of Italian teenager beatified by Pope Francis
Relic of Italian boy (15) beatified by Pope Francis brought to Armagh
The relic will once again be accompanied by Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino, from Assisi in Italy.
It is being taken to Ireland every three months in order to visit all 26 dioceses on the island.
Archbishop Sorrentino said: "We are happy that a relic of Blessed Carlo Acutis can reach four more dioceses in Ireland as, we are convinced, given previous experiences, that devotion to this young man, who lived according to the Gospel, is an example and a help to the church and to the many young people who are seeking points of reference to grasp the beauty of faith.”
The visit will co-incide with the launch of a new book written for Irish audiences by Monsignor Anthony Figueiredo, titled Blessed Carlo Acutis: Light the Flame of Faith.
