A Modern Saint in a Digital World

Carlo Acutis was a teenager who loved video games and soccer, but by the age of 15, he had done something extraordinary—he had built a global movement of faith online. Today, he is on the path to becoming the first millennial saint. Born in 1991, Carlo was an ordinary boy with an extraordinary mission. At a time when many of his peers saw the internet as a tool of entertainment, Carlo saw it as a tool to lead others to God. He catalogued Eucharistic miracles, creating a virtual exhibition that has been seen around the globe.

Nicola Gori, the Promoter of Carlo Acutis’ Canonization Case, explains, “Carlo is known everywhere, and why? Because he’s a modern-day Saint—a ‘2.0 Saint’—who used social media and new forms of communication for good, placing them in the service of the Gospel and the spreading of the faith.” Carlo’s example has quickly become global, and his impact continues to grow.

Faith and Family: A Profound Influence

Despite his global reach, Carlo was a teenager like any other—he loved sports, his friends, and his PlayStation. But he also had a deep spiritual life, one that his mother, Antonia Salzano, credits with saving her faith. “Carlo for me was like a savior because of his example. I was far from the faith,” she says. “Carlo was a tool that God used to make me understand that Jesus is really present in the Blessed Sacrament, because before I was like a protestant. I thought that the sacraments were like symbols. But through Carlo, I understood, through Eucharistic miracles where he spoke about the Eucharist, that Jesus is really present in the Blessed Sacrament—that there is a Real Presence.”

By the age of seven, Carlo had begun attending daily Mass and Eucharistic adoration. His life, as his mother recalls, revolved around the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. “We started the path together. He received his first Holy Communion at seven, and from that moment, he never missed daily Mass. He would go to Eucharistic adoration every day.”

A Heart for the Needy

Carlo’s faith wasn’t confined to just attending church. He believed in putting his love into action, organizing aid for the homeless in Milan at just nine years old. “Carlo couldn’t remain indifferent to seeing people suffering. He began organizing food, blankets, and meals for those in need. He was nine years old when he started organizing something like a domestic Caritas. He always said, ‘I have everything I need, I have a house, I have parents—how can I ignore those who have nothing?’”

A Deep Connection to St. Francis of Assisi

In 2020, Carlo Acutis was beatified, and Pope Francis has already announced that he will soon be canonized. Bishop Domenico Sorrentino reflects on why Carlo chose to be buried in Assisi, following in the footsteps of St. Francis. “Carlo was not from Assisi, but he wanted to come here. Like St. Francis, Carlo stripped himself of worldly things, offering himself to God,” Bishop Sorrentino explains. “Francis and Carlo were two heroes of renunciation. Francis, because he physically stripped himself of everything to live a life of poverty and love. Carlo, because he lovingly allowed himself to be stripped even of his own life.”

Carlo’s connection to Assisi, the home of St. Francis, runs deep despite a hundred years of difference. In both young men, Bishop Sorrentino says that we see lives lived in humble service to God, a reminder that holiness is accessible to all—even in the modern world.

A Saintly Death

It was in his final days that Carlo’s faith shone brightest. Diagnosed with leukemia at just 15, he accepted his suffering with grace and stayed joyful through it all. “Carlo said that he offered his suffering for the Church and the Pope,” his mother shares. “During his illness, always with a smile, never complaining. When the doctors asked if he was in pain, he would say, ‘Others suffer more than I do.’ Always with a smile. And he really died as a saint.”

A Legacy of Faith and Inspiration

Carlo’s legacy continues to inspire, attracting many young people to his tomb in Assisi because of the way he lived his life in faith, love, and service—both through technology and beyond it. As the first Millennial Blessed, Carlo Acutis is proof that sainthood is possible even in the digital age. His life, marked by his devotion to the Eucharist and compassion for those in need, serves as a beacon of hope for young people around the world.

Adapted by Jacob Stein