Pokémon, a marriage proposal, and sainthood

Wednesday, April 2, 2025

Maria Villa - Florida Catholic

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Did you know a saint loved Pokémon?

It’s true! Blessed Carlo Acutis, soon-to-be the first canonized millennial saint as of April 27, played Pokémon in the early 2000s. This is good news to me as a fan of the game! As an artist and Catholic school art teacher, I love making art about the Catholic faith and draw a lot of inspiration from Japanese media. In fact, I believe Pokémon can teach us a lot about what it means to be human.

Pokémon and paradise?

I grew up playing Pokémon and many other Nintendo video games in the 2000s and 2010s. Nintendo games hold a very special place in my heart, reminding me of many fond memories with friends in multiplayer mode, or tranquil moments by myself.

Pokémon, in particular, is one of my favorite Nintendo games: for me, it’s a game of wonder because it’s centered around exploring a world where Pokémon creatures live in the wild, have incredible abilities, and can be captured and befriended by the trainer so they can accompany you on a journey.

In fact, I think that as Catholics, Pokémon can help us view Heaven in a new way.

Many people believe that, when Jesus comes back and renews the earth and all of creation with it, we will once again live like Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden before original sin took place. If that is so, then we will live in harmony with nature and animals, and we will have the great work of being stewards of creation, just like Adam and Eve were instructed to do before the Fall.

Since Paradise is a safe place, then it will be a place where we can freely roam without worrying about danger striking us. For me, the most exciting part of playing Pokémon as a kid was that I could travel by myself, talk to anyone I wanted, and feel the satisfaction of leveling up my Pokémon and building my team.

Moreover, I think when a lot of people imagine Heaven, they imagine it as a mild place that is laid-back and uneventful. However, if God’s original plan for humanity before the Fall entailed working and having the mission of taking care of creation, then there will most likely be work to do once we are in Paradise. We know that after Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit, work took on the unpleasant quality of being painful and cumbersome at times. Well, since Jesus died to undo the curse, I imagine that when we are finally in Paradise, we will have work that lights our souls on fire with excitement and fills us with profound meaning and purpose.

“Reality supersedes fiction,” as the famous quote goes. Although the world of Pokemon has many legends and creatures that hold seemingly magical abilities, the universe and invisible spiritual realities that God has created are infinitely more interesting than any fictional world thought up by men or women.

We know so little about our own physical universe, much less the joys that await us in Heaven. We know through Church teaching that invisible angels are among us, but we don’t really understand the implications of this hidden truth. We also know that this life is full of struggles, but we might sometimes be blind to the spiritual battle that is going on in us.

Which brings me to my next point…

Friendship and support in the spiritual battle

Just as the game of Pokémon is a journey, our life on earth is a journey towards Heaven. Our earthly journey is full of challenges, which saints like Carlo Acutis also experienced.

Carlo Acutis is a great example of overcoming temptations. For instance, in the case of Pokémon, he allowed himself to enjoy it without allowing it to become a source of addiction, practicing the virtues of temperance and moderation by setting a time limit of playing video games for only one hour every week.

Personally, I find this quite challenging: it feels easier to either not play video games at all or indulge in many back-to-back hours of gameplay. Having the self-control to pause and save the game after one hour has passed is difficult, especially if you have just arrived at an exciting part of the storyline or are about to level up and evolve a Pokémon.

However, as Carlo Acutis said of his own time limit, “What does it matter if you can win a thousand battles if you cannot win against your own corrupt passions? It doesn’t matter. The real battle is with ourselves.”

When I asked my husband what Pokémon means to him, he said, “It’s about overcoming your challenges alongside your friends and loved ones.” He noted that, as a character, you enter into a wild world of unknown creatures, but you don’t face them alone.

In the game, your friends can help you by trading different Pokémon with you, which is important because you have to pick six Pokémon at a time to accompany you through your adventure. Playing with your friends, you’ll watch each other level up, learning how to play the game better together.

Similarly, in real life, our friendships should help us grow in character and virtue. As the Book of Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” The goal of friendship is to help each other grow as people, accompanying one another on our journey towards Heaven.

This is also the goal of marriage! My husband actually proposed to me through a Pokémon-themed scavenger hunt, since we both grew up enjoying Pokémon.

The scavenger hunt started off when I found a Poké Ball at the front door of my parents’ house containing a riddle related to a specific Pokémon. Each riddle led to a specific place around our neighborhood that held sentimental value to our relationship.

My best friend Leira drove me around town, took photos and played Pokémon soundtracks in the background. It took a while – my husband gave me a real challenge! – and my best friend’s idea of playing music in the background made me feel like I was embarking on a great adventure.

After opening 10 Poké Balls and solving each riddle in different locations, I ended up at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Miami, in front of a statue of the Virgin Mary. This was the church where my husband had first asked me to be his girlfriend. Now, near the statue of the Virgin Mary, he challenged me to a Pokémon battle.

I won, of course.

Then, he dropped down on one knee, took out a Master Ball – which in the games has a 100% catch rate if you throw it at any Pokémon – and asked me to marry him.

I said “yes,” and here we are two years later, married in the Church and blessed with a beautiful baby girl!

Living out God’s call to greatness

Pokémon is a reminder that life is beautiful. The Pokémon world is a reflection of the real world that God created, and a reminder that Paradise awaits us if we are faithful to God. Heaven will be infinitely more fun and exciting than any video game.

One of my favorite quotes from Pope John Paul II is, “Life with Christ is a wonderful adventure.” May this also be a reminder to gamers that it is not enough to just go on adventures in a digital world: everyone should go on their own real-life adventure by following God’s call.

In November of 2000, Pope John Paul II blessed the Pokémon franchise during a public audience, saying, “Today, I would like to extend a special blessing to all the Pokémon and their trainers. May they bring joy and happiness to the lives of our young people.”

Every person has his or her own adventure to undertake, and it is up to us to discover what mission God has for our life. God’s plans are better than our own, and he works everything for the good of those whom he loves – and he loves every human being on the face of this earth. We must always collaborate with him so that we can create a masterpiece and a great work of art with our lives. That’s what saints like Carlo Acutis did, and they have no regrets about it.

In today’s world, we need saints more than ever. We need to be countercultural by doing exactly what Jesus tells us to do – and then miracles will happen.