A small but deeply significant relic of Carlo Acutis, the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint, has vanished from a parish in western Venezuela, sending shockwaves through the local faith community.
What should have been a moment of celebration turned into worry as parishioners discovered the sacred item missing.
The Disappearance at Santo Domingo de Guzmán
The relic—a tiny, circular piece of cloth—was reported missing on Tuesday by staff at Santo Domingo de Guzmán parish in Cardenal Quintero, Mérida state.
Adrián García, coordinator of the San Carlo Acutis Youth Group, told reporters, “So far, there’s no information; it’s still missing.
We have faith in God that it will appear. It has great spiritual value.”
Housed in a protective glass reliquary, the relic disappeared just two days after Pope Leo XIV officially canonized Acutis, marking a bittersweet start to the celebrations.
Who Was Carlo Acutis
Carlo Acutis, who died of leukemia in 2006 at the age of 15, was a tech-savvy teen who used computers to share and document the Catholic faith.
He is hailed as a role model for young Catholics, earning nicknames like “God’s Influencer” for his multilingual website cataloging Eucharistic miracles recognized by the Church.
Born in London on May 3, 1991, to a wealthy family that later returned to Milan, Italy, Acutis’ life blended technology with devotion, leaving a lasting legacy for the next generation of believers.
The Significance of the Relic
The missing cloth is classified as a “third-degree relic,” meaning it had been touched by Acutis himself.
Such relics hold immense spiritual value for devotees and are often sent to churches worldwide.
In Venezuela, the youth group had requested this particular relic after Acutis was declared “blessed” in 2020, a step before sainthood.
The Vatican had recognized a miracle attributed to Acutis involving a Brazilian child recovering from a pancreatic deformity, which paved the way for his canonization.
Pope Leo XIV formally declared Acutis a saint last week during an open-air Mass at St. Peter’s Square before an estimated 80,000 people.
Investigations Underway
Police are now investigating the disappearance, while the Church has previously warned against the online sale of Carlo Acutis’ relics.
Parish staff and devotees continue to hope that the missing cloth will be recovered soon, reflecting both the sacred nature of the relic and its importance to the global Catholic community.