Today is September 21, the Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
We read at today’s Mass, “If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth,who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon” (Lk 16:10-13).
Carlo Acutis was not afraid to stand alone when it came to defending the truth. During a religion class discussion on abortion, he was the only one to speak against it. With calm conviction, he explained that he was pro-life and opposed to abortion. He did so without arrogance or trying to impose his view, but with the quiet courage of someone who knew the dignity of every human person. His words puzzled his classmates, many of whom were swayed by the culture around them. But Carlo would not remain silent about what he knew was true.
Carlo’s courage did not come from books or arguments alone. His convictions were formed in silence, in prayer and in his deep friendship with Jesus and Mary. He had the docility of one who listened to the Holy Spirit. This gave him both clarity and serenity. He defended life not with anger, but with respect and even humor, ensuring his message could be heard without alienating those who disagreed.
Conviction and charity
This consistency extended to all areas of his life. He valued purity, temperance and self-control. He avoided entertainment that cheapened human dignity. He made small sacrifices for the souls in purgatory, for Mary and for those in need. For him, defending life was not only about one issue, but also about living a whole pattern of respect for the human person, body and soul, created in God’s image.
Carlo reminds us that to be pro-life is not simply to hold an opinion, but to embrace a way of life rooted in reverence for God’s gift. Even when unpopular, we must speak with conviction but also with charity, knowing that truth itself is persuasive when expressed in love.
Let us pray,
O God, who founded all the commands of your sacred Law upon love of you and of our neighbor, grant that, by keeping your precepts, we may merit to attain eternal life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
