BOONTON Nicholas MacDonald, 6, listened with rapt attention, as his mother, Theresa, read a story on a placard in front of them more thrilling than any tale of fantasy or suspense: one about a miracle that involved the Eucharist. On Sunday, they walked around the gym of Our Lady of Mount Carmel (OLMC) School here, reading many of the 76 placards set up to tell about Eucharistic miracles around the world — from it turning to actual flesh and blood to being thrown into a fire and coming out unscathed.
“I liked the exhibit. It was nice and quiet. I liked the stories,” said Nicholas MacDonald, as he finished viewing the traveling Vatican international exhibit of placards, “Eucharistic Miracles of the World,” which visited the OLMC parish and school community last Saturday and Sunday. He told The Beacon part of one of the Eucharistic miracle stories that he heard. “I liked the story of people having Mass and then having to fight a battle. They stopped the Mass and covered the Eucharist. Then, the battle was over. They had Mass again. They protected Jesus,” he said.
Even though Theresa MacDonald read some of the stories aloud to two of her four children — Nicholas and Marielle, 8 — there was an invisible voice and presence that the visitors could not see: that of Blessed Carlo Acutis. A Servant of God, he is known as the patron saint of the internet, because he used his skills as a computer programmer to promote Eucharistic miracles until his death from leukemia in 2006 at age 15. Last year, Pope Francis beatified the teenager who researched and designed the “Eucharistic Miracles” exhibit.
“It’s good for Nicholas to hear these stories, because he is preparing for First Holy Communion. The exhibit is extensive and organized. It seems that these miracles happened at times when people took the Eucharistic for granted, because they could receive it everyday. These miracles show that the Eucharist is the Real Presence of Christ,” said Theresa MacDonald, who attended the event with husband, Andrew, and her other children, Henry, 11, and Alban, 4, after 9 a.m. Mass on Sunday in OLMC Church. All four MacDonald children attend the parish school. “These stories appeal to young people, who say, ‘Of course, these miracles happened.’ Adults might be more jaded. Also, the faith of Blessed Carlo resonates with young people,” she said.
After Masses and at other special times last weekend, people from OLMC and other parishes visited the exhibit in the parish school. As hymns quietly played, they walked around three rows of panels, which stood on tables and were connected in a zigzag pattern. People of all ages took time to read many of the panels, which featured text, photos, drawings, and maps to help tell the stories of these miracles that originated from around the world, ranged from centuries ago to the modern day, and even involved a few saints.
The traveling exhibit will return to the Diocese at St. Vincent DePaul Parish in Stirling on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 13–14, and St. Kateri Tekakwitha Parish in Sparta on Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 20–21. Sponsoring the exhibit is the Real Presence Eucharistic Education and Adoration Association.
One of the first panels that visitors read tells the story of Blessed Carlo, who was born in London on May 3, 2001, and moved with his family to Milan shortly thereafter. From an early age, he showed a special love for God and empathy for people, especially children, who were bullied or were disabled. He developed a fascination with Eucharistic miracles, researching them and visiting some sites, where they occurred. At age 15, he was diagnosed with untreatable leukemia, bringing him suffering that he offered up to the Lord, the Pope, and the Church. He died on Oct. 12, 2006, and was beatified last year in the Italian city of Assisi.
Looking over the exhibit on Sunday morning was Eileen Vandenberg, OLMC School’s assistant headmaster, who helped set up the placards.
“Blessed Carlo researched and assembled these miracle stories and people appreciate it. It’s great that the exhibit travels, so we can come to see it and experience it as a community,” Vandenberg said. “Blessed Carlo is inspiring. He was a contemporary of young people today, not from centuries ago. With all the distractions in life, he used technology to deepen his faith and the faith of others,” she said.
The OLMC community saw the Vatican-approved Eucharistic miracles on display through the eyes of faith. They learned or became reacquainted with the fact that these occurrences were real, even though science has no explanation for them. This “virtual tour” of miracles included:
• A Eucharist thrown into fire overnight is miraculously unscathed in Amsterdam, Holland in 1345.
• A German priest, who stopped in Bolsena-Orvieta, Italy, has difficulties believing in the Real Presence. As he celebrates Mass above the tomb of St. Christina in 1263, blood begins seeping out of the Host during the Consecration. Because of this miracle, Pope Urban IV commissioned the feast of Corpus Christi, which is celebrated in June.
After reading about Blessed Carlo, Patricia Tam, whose son, Benedict, is a sixth-grader at the school, told The Beacon that she did not know that so much information about these miracles existed.
“I want Benedict to read about these miracles and see a clear path to Jesus. We are meant to go to heaven. It is not about riches and popularity like the media says. Blessed Carlo is an inspiration, because he spread what he believed through the internet,” Tam said.
One parish that promoted the “Eucharistic Miracles” exhibit at OLMC on social media was St. Mary in Dover, which recently built a shrine to Blessed Carlo. It has his portrait and a relic with flowers and candles.
“We are promoting a devotion to Blessed Carlo, which takes time,” said Father Lemmuel Camacho, pastor, who mentions him in homilies. The parish religious education program has been incorporating lessons about him into its curriculum. People visit the shrine, he said. “Kids can relate to Blessed Carlo. He is an example for the youth of love for the Eucharist, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the life of Christ. As a millennial, Blessed Carlo could become the first saint depicted wearing jeans and sneakers — with a halo,” he said. [ Information: http://www.
miracolieucaristici.org/en/liste/list.html ]