The Value Of Youth – First Millennial Saint Canonized

Front view of Pople Leo speaking seen from the waist up in white clerical garb — Pope Leo canonized the first millennial saint on September 7, 2025 [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Two big firsts occurred on September 7th in Vatican City. That day, Pope Leo presided over the first canonizations of his papacy during a mass in St. Peter’s Square. Carlo Acutis, one of the two individuals proclaimed saints then, died at the young age of fifteen. He stands as the first millennial saint canonized in history. Acutis’ conduct during his short life provides a shining example of heeding the Apostle Paul’s directive in 1 Timothy 4:12 not to allow others to look down on your youth.

Event Canonizing First Millennial Saint

Pope Leo presided over an open air mass on September 7th which began at 10:00 am local time. At that time, he proclaimed Carlo Acutis as a saint. Estimates place the crowd in attendance around 80,000 people. Originally, the event had been scheduled for April 27th during the Jubilee of Adolescents. However, Pope Francis’ April 21st death caused the event’s postponement.

Because Pope Leo only became pope in the last few months, the September 7th canonization service was the first of his papacy. Prior to this event, the last such service held took place in October 2024. when Pope Francis named 14 people saints during a St. Peter’s Square mass.

View down on the front of the crowd in St. Peter's Square during the mass for canonization of St. John XXIII and St. John Paul II — A huge crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square in 2014 for a mass where new saints were canonized [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Saints And Canonization

The word saint derives from a Latin word, sanctus, meaning holy. Being named a saint means the church believes the individual is in heaven with God. Typically, consideration for sainthood does not take place until five years after death. A Vatican department must examine each potential saint to confirm they led a holy life. The path to sainthood involves a number of steps and can take several years to complete.

Canonization is the Church’s formal process to declare a person a saint worthy of veneration. Carlo Acutis, who died in 2006, underwent this process. The canonization mass for Acutis as the first millennial saint did not occur until 2025, nineteen years after his death. Now canonized, Acutis joins others, such as Mother Theresa and Francis of Assisi, as a recognized saint.

View of Mother Theresa in a room seated in a chair with a newspaer in her lap. A man and a woman sit just off to opposite sides of her. — Acutis, the first millennial saint, is now a recognized saint like Mother Theresa [Image from Wikimedia Commons]

Background Of First Millennial Saint Canonized

Carlo Acutis entered this world on May 3, 1991. Although born to a wealthy Italian family living in London, he grew up in Milan, Italy when his family subsequently moved there. Acutis’ family was not religious, but he became increasingly devout as he got older. The youth became very active in his Jesuit-run high school and his parish in Milan.

Acutis’ family owned a home in Assisi where he vacationed and spent a good deal of time. He became involved with the church community in Assisi and learned about St. Francis. Acoutis felt a strong connection to the saint, being inspired by that saint’s dedication to the poor and respect for creation.

First Millennial Saint’s Religious Work

The religious work out of which Acutis’ saintly status arose involved use of his technological skills. His work rose to such a level as to cause some to describe him as a computer genius. He exhibited a particular aptitude for computer science and studied college-level computer programming while a teen.

With a proficiency in several computer coding languages, Acutis built websites to share his faith. For example, he created a multilingual website documenting specific church-recognized miracles, a feat typically requiring a professional to produce. Acutis created websites not only for his parish, but for the Catholic Church as a whole. This tech work earned him the nickname of “God’s Influencer.”

Picture of black computer screen with various colors of coding — The first millennial saint used coding skills to develop religious websites [Image by Lawrence Monk from Pixabay]

Reasoning For Acutis Being First Millennial Saint

Carlo’s mother, Antonia Salzano, pinpointed why her son had such an appeal. She describes him as an “ordinary child,” who did the same things other teenagers did at the time. She felt her son’s “extraordinary quality” was to put Jesus first in his life. In doing so, Acoutis used his technology skills to share his faith.

The fact of the new saint’s youth made his work even more remarkable. As a millennial, one typically born from 1981 to 1996, his youth attracted young Catholics to the faith in the digital age. The teen provided a shining example of what one can do with faith with God’s help and despite being a minor.

Death And Legacy Of First Canonized Millennial Saint

Sadly, Acutis became ill in October 2006. Diagnosed with acute leukemia, he died just a few days later at age 15. Because of his strong connection to St. Francis, the teen chose to be buried in Assisi. Since his entombment there, the first canonized millennial saint has drawn crowds in the millions. He can be seen through glass wearing Nike sneakers, jeans, and a sweatshirt.

Pope Leo lauded Acutis during the canonization mass of this first millennial saint. Rather than anyone looking down on Acutis for his youth, the teen was described as having made a “masterpiece” of his life by dedicating it to God. The pope indicated the newest saint offered an invitation to all, but especially to young people, not to squander our lives. And the Apostle Paul could use Acutis as the poster boy supporting 1 Timothy 4:12.