Theology of the Body and the Incorruptibility of Blessed Carlo Acutis
Claudio de Lima Barbosa, MD, MSc
Daniela de Aguiar Monteiro, RN
“Offro tutte le sofferenze che dovrò patire, al Signore, per il Papa e per la Chiesa, per non fare il Purgatorio e andare dritto in Paradiso".
Abstract
Humanity is currently passing through a crisis of values that challenges our understanding and hinders our search for answers. Coincidently, the exhibition of the body of a young Italian man that died at the age of 15 from a fulminant form of leukemia, stirred interest as it was intact, even 14 years after burial, and that he had led a chaste and pious life. Prodigious in computer skills, the young Carlo Acutis used his computer to evangelize without delving into the world of pornography, deprivation and fake news, which invade the hearts of the young and adults alike. This article reviews the prophetic message left by Carlo Acutis in light of the Theology of the Body of St. John Paul II and the meaning of the supposed incorruptibility of his body.
The intact body of Carlo
The body of the Italian teen Carlo Acutis, who died in 2006 at the age of 15, was exhibited to the public on 1st October 2020. The opening of his tomb, situated at the Santuario della Spogliazione in the city of Assisi, Italy, had a worldwide impact due to its state of conservation, "dressed" in a sweatshirt, sneakers and jeans. It is a fact that the body received some previous form of postmortem treatment, in particular the face that received a covering of silicone. At that time, a lot of speculation was formed around the unusual fact of exhibiting such a well-preserved corpse to public veneration, fourteen years after burial. The Vatican, through the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, has not yet officially commented on the supposed incorruptibility of Carlo. However, the fact remains that on the day of his exhumation, which occurred on the 23 January 2019, at the cemetery of Assisi, witnesses confirmed an impressive state of cadaveric conservation, which is itself an extremely rare event in nature or in medicine. The Church, rightly, sought to exalt the virtues of his life and examples of holiness as the focus of attention and not just the veneration of his remains. In declarations made by ACI Press and the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), the Rector of the Santuario dellla Spogliazione, Father Carlos Acácio Gonçalves Ferreira, explained that Acutis' body “is in a very well-preserved state”, however, “not intact”.
However, for those who followed that historic moment live, through social media, there is no way to forget the emotion and admiration for something that seems miraculous and extraordinary.
Incorruptibility in Medicine and in the Church
Preserved bodies can be divided into three classifications: those artificially preserved, those accidently preserved, and incorruptible. Specimens that have been preserved accidentally or naturally were found even before the era of the Egyptian pharaohs, when the art of embalming originated, thus producing the artificially preserved mummies that have survived for millennia. On the other hand, incorruptible preservation has only existed since the start of Christianity. The preservation of such, since that time, challenge the opinions of skeptics and contradict the laws of nature.
The closer we examine the preservation of the incorruptible, the more perplexing the matter becomes, as the preservation of these corpses seems not to depend on the manner that the burial occurred or on the temperature or place that it occurred. These were also not adversely affected by the long delays between the time of death and the burial, by humidity in the tomb, by rough handling, by frequent transferences, by the covering with quicklime or by the proximity of corpses in decomposition. The majority of such corpses were never embalmed or given any kind of special treatment, but all the same were found as they appeared in life, flexible and sweetly scented many years after death, in sharp contrast to those specimens of the other two abovementioned classifications, which were without exemption found to be rigid, discolored and skeletal. The mystery of their preservation is further aggravated by the observance of blood and clear oils, which emanate from a number of these sacred relics – a phenomenon that, again, needless to say, has never been recorded in relation to those preserved deliberately or accidentally.
The incorruptible were incorrectly classified as natural mummies, but the products for such methods of preservation deliberate or accidental, without exception, were nothing more than wrinkled specimens, which were always rigid and extremely dry. The majority of the incorruptible, however, are not dry or rigid, but extremely humid and flexible, even after the passing of centuries. In addition, their preservation occurred under conditions that would naturally promote and encourage putrefaction, whereas these corpses survived circumstances that would no doubt have required treatment and would have no doubt resulted in the decay of others.
In an era of uncertainty and disbelief in that considered as Sacred, the exhumation of the body and the intact internal organs of Carlo, cannot be simply dismissed. How else, if not by a miracle, can the existence of these relics be explained, when one considers that many of these saints, like Carlo, died of diseases and infirmities that so vigorously assaulted their bodies as to extinguish their lives? In the case of Carlo, the M3 promyelocytic leukemia that took his life often caused him to bleed "from every pore". According to eyewitness reports, it was in such a state that the young Italian was encountered, with the cause of death being due to a hemorrhagic stroke, more popularly known just as a stroke, which led to him falling into a coma hours before official brain death was declared. The clinical severity and impairment of organs prevented the family from donating any of his organs8.
How else, if not by a miracle, can we explain such a condition if his body was not embalmed and his internal parts contained all sorts of corruptible material? How could they have withstood extreme humidity, which encourages decay? How could the bodies of Carlo and all these incorruptible saints resist the myriad of bacteria that are attracted not only to living bodies, but also especially to those which lack the living forces to challenge them? If living flesh is so delicate and subject to disease, how could these bodies, unable to heal or restore themselves, resist over the centuries when exposed to various climatic types, fluctuating levels of humidity and temperature, frequent clothing rituals, removal of relics, as well as subject to countless probing during periodic exams? That some now somewhat discolored bodies exist, in light of these factors, is no less a wonder. Nonetheless, what about those which are perfectly preserved?
Physiological decomposition of the Cadaver9
Shortly after death, the corpse cools until the temperature of the environment, where the process of decomposition of the soft tissue transpires through the action of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria until skeletonization. Autolysis and disintegration of cell walls varies depending on the surrounding environmental conditions, but usually begins, in bodies buried in graves, between 48 to 72 hours after death10. Decomposition is faster in the presence of oxygen, and therefore bodies kept on the surface decompose faster than those buried in the ground10. A body decomposes more quickly if sepsis or a fever were present before death, in edematous tissues, in obese individuals, while decomposition will be slower in thin individuals and in babies11.
The main extrinsic factor affecting body decomposition is temperature, which affects not only the enzymatic biochemical processes of protein and carbohydrate breakdown, but also the activity of insects and bacteria. Cadaveric decomposition occurs more quickly in air than in water or soil; it is faster in hot and dry places, in summer than in winter9. Many factors affect decomposition in buried bodies. The deeper the body is buried; slower will be the process of decay12. The longer the time since burial occurred; greater will be the degree of decomposition, as such there is a linear relationship between the time of burial and the stage of decomposition.
The type of soil also influences the rate of decomposition. According to experimental studies with animal cadavers, decomposition occurs quicker in fields, less so in the forest and slower still in wetland soils. This is attributed to soil conditions, such as moisture content, pH and nutrient availability, which in turn influence the number and activity of microbial agents at the site.
Research by Carter and collaborators13 identified humidity as being a dominant environmental factor in the decomposition of corpses buried in soil. A slower rate of cadaveric decomposition in dry soils is not only due to the restriction of microbial motility resulting from a lack of nutrient supply, but also from lack of moisture restricting the activity of enzymes, many of which are hydrolytic. In contrast, in very wet soils, gas diffusion limitations causes a decrease in aerobic metabolism and results in decreased decomposition.
Cadaveric transformation into a complete skeleton14 in hot and humid environments can occur between 1 and 2 weeks. It is estimated that in temperate climates, this process takes 12 to 18 months, but tendons, the periosteum of bones and ligaments are maintained, and it takes about 3 years to arrive at a "clean" skeleton.
It is due to the aforementioned reasons that attention was drawn to the fact that the corpse of the Blessed Carlo Acutis was found “intact” 14 years after his burial at the cemetery of Assisi, Italy.
Why is then that very few corpses of the blessed and saints of the Church are presented as moderately or almost completely incorrupt when these are exhumed according to the regulations of the Congregation for the Cause of Saints? Who can explain why this grace was denied to some saints and given to others, many of whom are less well known and who would seem “less worthy?” Some of our most distinguished saints - Francisco and Clara de Assis, Saint Antônio de Pádua and Saint Francisco Cabrini, to cite a few - did not escape the destruction of the tomb. Among the thousands beatified and canonized by the Holy Catholic Church, only 102 are recognized as incorruptible bodies (or parts of these bodies)6.
When a novice suggested to the dying St. Therese of Lisieux, the Little Flower, whom the Popes have always praised, that God would surely perform a miracle to preserve her uncorrupted body, the dying Saint replied humbly: “Oh no. Not that miracle...” and, in fact, this miracle was never bestowed upon her.
It would be foolish to weigh the holiness and merits of one Saint against the good works and achievements of another, and it would still be impossible to understand the reason for the Power that ordained this privilege for some and not for others. However, considering the unusual circumstances of these holy preservations of the body, as well as the phenomena and miracles that surrounded many of them, we must agree with the opinion of St. Cyril of Jerusalem, who declared: “Even when the soul is gone, power and virtue remain in bodies of the saints because of the righteous souls that dwelt in them”.
The impressive symbolism of the Beatification of Carlo took place in the Superior Basilica of San Francisco where the mortal remains of the humble man of Assisi were called to the attention of the faithful. As until that particular time, no servant, venerable or blessed, of the church had received such an honor.
What can we learn from these facts, present in the history of these countless Catholic saints around the world and, specifically at this time when the world suffers from a devastating pandemic, the internet is invaded by lies of all kinds and sins, including against chastity and other forms of self-restraint, as we see Europe, Italy and so many peoples becoming more and more pagan?
A young man, who comparable to so many with COVID-19, sensed his imminent death and knew how to contemplate it and offer himself as a victim for “Our Lord Jesus Christ, for the Pope, for the Church and thus go straight to Paradise, not passing through purgatory".
Worthy of note here is that in the 20th century, there were practically no phenomena of incorruptibility and the live transmission of the exposure of the body of Carlo, intact, to millions of people produced amazement, admiration and impact.
Incorruption according to the Theology of the Body of St. John Paul II
For Saint Paul, to be a Saint is to be Strong, being that our sinful nature is eminently “weak”. He put this in chapter 15, (1Cor 15, 42-43) of his First Letter to the Corinthians: 42 “So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power”.
“Weak” is, therefore, the body that – using metaphysical language - arises from the temporal soil of humanity. The human body, in the eyes of the Apostles, arising from the terrestrial seed, results in “weakness”.
This means not only that it is “corruptible”, submitted to death and all that it entails, but also that it is the “animal body” (carnal). However, the body "full of strength", which man will inherit from the last Adam-Christ, as a participant in the future resurrection, will be a "spiritual" body. It will be incorruptible, as it will not hold the threat of death.
Thus, St. John Paul II7teaches us in his catechesis on the Theology of the Body: the antinomy “weak-full of strength” explicitly refers not so much to the body considered as seperate, but to the entire constitution of man considered in its corporeality. Only within the framework of such a constitution can the body become “spiritual”; and such spiritualization of the body will be the source of its strength and incorruptibility.
When we analyze the last moments in the life of Blessed Carlo Acutis, the maturity and strength with which he dealt with a cruel disease, which gave him great suffering until his death, when we remember how he lived, behaved in a chaste and pious way, we realize how he became sanctified from one day to the next.
Is this not clear evidence of someone who, in life, grew stronger in spirit and this created the conditions for his incorruptibility (even if partial)?
On the other hand, a world steeped in lust, promiscuity, worldly materialism and apostasy is destined to death. According to Saint Paul, the man in whom lust prevails over spirituality - that is, the "animal body" will die, but must resurface in a "spiritual body" when the spirit obtains a fair supremacy over the body, spirituality over sensuality. The “animal body”, which is the earthly antithesis of the “spiritual body” has in sensuality a force that harms man, while he, living “in the knowledge of good and evil”, is solicited and almost impelled towards evil.
Carlo, passionate for and expert in Information Technology, left striking phrases in his notebook for a young man of his age that attest to his degree of purity, control of instincts and chastity:
“The only woman in my life was Our Lady”.
“I don't mind dying, because during my life I haven't spent even a minute doing things that displease God.8”.
Without the presence of Jesus in his daily life, it would not be possible to understand the behavior and way of being of this boy, much like his friends, however, one who maintained an incorruptible secret within him8. Antônia Salzano, the mother of carlo, and her attendant, Rajesh, told how Carlo would cover his eyes with his hands if there were any scandalous programs or advertisements on television8.
The growing interest around the figure of Carlo Acutis, a simple teenager and, therefore, open to criticism in relation to maturity and theological knowledge, comes up against the historical series of Catholic Saints at an early age, but with immense wisdom and fruit of the action of the Holy Spirit which "blows wherever and whenever it wants" (John 3:8). We can therefore state, “that children are often the privileged interlocutors chosen by Jesus and the Virgin Mary to entrust their message aimed at the whole Church and humanity”8.
Saint Paul, in his first Letter to the Thessalonians (4,3-5), purity consists of temperance and in the First Letter to the Corinthians (12,18-25) emphasis is placed on “respect” due to the human body being seen in relation to its component of modesty. In the Pauline Letters, purity, as a Christian virtue, proves to be an effective way to move away from what in the human heart is the fruit of lust for the flesh. Abstaining from "impurity", which presupposes possession of the body "in holiness and honor" allows us to deduce that, according to the doctrine of the Apostle, purity is a capacity integrated in the dignity of the body, that is, in the dignity of the person in relation to one’s own body. Purity, understood as “capacity”, is an expression and fruit of life “according to the Spirit”, that is, as a new capacity of the human being in which the gift of the Holy Spirit bears fruit.
The Holy Spirit, according to Paul, enters the human body as it does in the “temple”, dwelling in it and working together with its spiritual gifts. Among these gifts, that which is most bonded to the virtue of purity seems to be the gift of piety, something so present in the life of the Blessed Carlo Acutis.
The cause of the beatification of Carlos was of no surprise to the investigators of the Holy See, as there was found on his personal computer no search of the Internet for sites that would discredit his moral conduct, purity and chastity.
“A Jesuit priest, a famous professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute, who met Carlo on several occasions, said of him: he was a simple boy, of extraordinary purity.” A friend of Carlo, from Puglia, testifies on his purity: “It is important for me to highlight that in relation to Carlo's moral aspect, it was like the perfume that emanated from a life lived in purity8.”
St. Francis De Salles, in his Philothea, reminds us that “chastity is the lily among all the virtues and already in this life it makes us like angels, there being nothing more beautiful than purity, and purity of men is chastity. Chastity is also called integrity and vice the opposite, corruption. In a word, among the virtues, chastity has the glory of being the ornament of soul and body at the same time”15.
Carlo was beatified in the presence of his parents and his twin brothers, an unprecedented event in the history of the Church on October 10th, 2020, in the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. How many parents were able to witness the beatification of their own son and see a Reliquary enter the Basilica with his heart uncorrupted?
In his homily, the Cardinal Vicar of the Pope for the Diocese of Rome, Agostino Vallini said:
“Let us remember a 15-year-old boy, who revealed a surprising Christian maturity that stimulates and encourages us to take seriously a life of faith. Carlo testified that Faith does not distance us from life, but immerses us more deeply in it, showing us the solid way to live the joy of the Gospel. This new Blessed one also represents a model of strength alien to all forms of covenants, aware that to remain in the love of Jesus, it is necessary to live the Gospel in a concrete way, even if one has to swim against the current”.
References:
1. https://jovempan.com.br/noticias/mundo/corpo-de-jovem-que-morreu-em-2006-e-sera-beatificado-nao-se-decompos-confira-foto.html. Accessed February 07th, 2021 at 17:00 h.
2. http://www.causesanti.va/it/notizie/notizie-2020/becciu-carlo-acutis-una-vita-offerta-per-gesu-la-chiesa-e-il-pap.html. Accessed February 01th, 2021 at 22:00 h.
3. https://pt.aleteia.org/2020/10/01/o-corpo-do-carlo-acutis-esta-incorrupto/. Accessed February, 07th, 2021 at 16:57 h.
4. https://www.acidigital.com/noticias/carlo-acutis-beato-de-tenis-e-calca-jeans-afirma-sacerdote-84075. Accessed February, 02th, 2021 at 22:03 h.
5. Cruz, J.C. (1977). The Incorruptibles. A Study of the Incorruption of the Bodies of Various Catholic Saints and Beati. North Carolina: TAN Books.
6. http://miraclehunter.com/incorruptibles/1900-2000.html. Accessed February, 02th, 2021 at 18:40 h.
7. Paul II, Saint John. (2005). The Redemption of the Body and Sacramentality of Marriage (Theology of the Body). Rome: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
8. Gori, N. (2013). Eucharist. My Highway to Heaven. Biography of Carlo Acutis.(6nd ed). San Paolo Edizioni.
9. Jarvis Hayman and Marc Oxenham (2016). Human Body Decomposition. London: Elsevier.
10. Dent, B.B., Forbes, S.L., Stuart, B.H (2004). Review of human decomposition process in soil. Environ Geol 45 (4), 576-585.
11. Perper, J.A. Time of death and changes after death (2006). In: spitz WU (Ed), Spitz and Fisher’s Medico legal Investigation of Death, 4th ed. Charles C Springer, Springsfield, Illinois, pp 108-108. Ch 3.
12. Rodrigues, W.C., Bass, W.M (1985). Decomposition of buried bodies and methods that may aid in their location. J Forensic Sci, 30(3), 836-852.
13. Carter, D.O., Yellowlees D., Tibbett, M (2010). Moisture can be the dominant environmental parameter governing cadaver decomposition in soil. Forensic Sci Int, 200,60-66.
14. Pinheiro J. (2006) Decay Process of a Cadaver. In: Schmitt A, Cunha E, Pinheiro J. (eds) Forensic Anthropology and Medicine. Humana Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59745-099-7_5.
15. Francis of Sales, St. (2002). Introduction to the Devout Life. Grand Rapids, MI: Christian Classics Ethereal Library.
