If you look up St. Carlo Acutis in Britannica, he is described by the encyclopedic source as an “English-born Italian computer programmer.”
True enough. But how did Acutis go from being a 15-year-old tech whiz kid who built a website documenting miracles worldwide to being recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church?
We’ve got the answer, as well as interesting tidbits about how one becomes canonized as Acutis was Sept. 7 by Pope Leo XIV in front of a cheering crowd at the Vatican.
How do you become a saint?
To be considered for sainthood, a person must be dead (there is, in fact, no such thing as a “living saint”), he or she must have ascended into heaven and have performed two miracles while living, by order of the Catholic Church.
According to United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) website: “Once the miracle has been verified, the pope issues a decree declaring the miracle and the person receives the title of “Blessed”… . A second miracle must be attributed to the Blessed in order for him or her to be canonized a saint.”
Saints can be any age (and many saints cannonized have been under 25, like Acutis) and can be from anywhere in the world, according to WeDareToSay.com, a website about the tenets of Catholicism.
What did Carlo Acutis do to become a saint?
Acutis was the son of Italian parents, Andrea Acutis and Antonia Salzano Acutis, living in England at the time of his birth, according to Britannica. His mother recalls he was religious at a young age, “and he often asked his parents to take him to the birthplaces of saints and the sites of eucharistic miracles.”
As a teenager, he used his digital skills to create a website that catalogued more than 150 miracles by country and date, notes the USCCB.
In 2006, he died of leukemia suddenly at just 15 years old, but not before he “offered his sufferings (as an example of sacrifice) to Pope Benedict XVI and the Church,” also according to the USCCB.
As required by the Church, at least two miracles were investigated and attributed directly to Acutis: the healing of a boy who had a severe pancreatic malformation, and a woman who was near death after a bicycle accident.
What is the process for becoming a saint? How long did it take Acutis?
The Church first nominated Acutis for sainthood in 2012, which set off a close examination of his life.
In 2020, Pope Francis beatified Acutis with the title of “Blessed” and The College of Cardinals voted to canonize Acutis in 2024.
How long after death can a person be considered for sainthood?
Yes, there is a waiting list.
“The official process of canonization does not begin until five years after the death of the candidate. This period of time permits the Church to verify whether the candidate enjoys a true and widespread reputation of holiness. … ” according to SolanusCasey.org, a website that follows the sainthood journey of the “Blessed Solanus Casey.”
Mother Teresa was canonized as Saint Teresa of Calcutta in 2016 by then-Pope Francis, according to History.com. It was almost two decades after her death.
What is the significance of Acutis as the ‘first millennial saint’?
Carlo Acutis wasn’t actually the only young person to be cannonized by Pope Leo XIV on Sept. 7. Also receiving sainthood was Pier Giorgi Frassati who was born April 6, 1901, and died July 4, 1925, of polio at age 24; though he was certainly not a millennial, the term for the generation born between 1981 and 1996.
“Sts. Pier Giorgio Frassati and Carlo Acutis are an invitation to all of us, especially young people, not to squander our lives, but to direct them upward and make them masterpieces,” the Pope said during the ceremony.
As the spiritual director for the Diocese of Orlando, the Rev. Anthony Aarons tries to bridge the age gap between younger and older Catholics, including those in the Volusia area. In a phone interview Monday with The News-Journal, he said the naming of a teenager as a saint was significant.
“We’ve had young people canonized before,” Aarons said, “but he is the first one in our generation. … I think he (Carlo Acutis) is very relatable and it was actually his interest in computers that set him on the path he was on.”
Aarons was on his way for a 10-day voyage to Assisi, Italy, to visit Acutis’ tomb, where his body is on display.
How is the saint’s body preserved?
Brittanica says saints’ bodies are preserved through processes such as embalming … or using wax effigies and masks to cover the remains for public viewing after exhumation.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Italian teenager Carlo Acutis is being called the ‘first millennial saint’
Reporting by Colleen Michele Jones, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
