Meet Carlo Acutis, the Catholic Church’s First Millennial Saint

The Vatican has announced the upcoming canonization of Carlo Acutis, an Italian teenager who will become the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint. Acutis, who died of leukemia in 2006 at the age of 15, will also be the first known saint to have enjoyed playing video games.

Born in London in 1991, Acutis moved to Milan, Italy, with his family shortly after. He was raised Catholic and was known for his acts of kindness, such as volunteering with the homeless, cleaning up litter in his neighborhood and working at his local church.

Despite his love of video games like Halo, Mario and Pokémon, Acutis limited himself to an hour of play per week due to fears of addiction. He was also tech-savvy and earned the nickname “God Influencer” for his work documenting Catholic miracles on a website he created.

The process of canonization of Acutis has been underway for several years. The cause for his canonization was opened in 2012, just six years after his death. He was declared “venerable” in 2018 and beatified in 2020 when the Catholic Church recognized a miracle attributed to him, that of a Brazilian boy with a serious birth defect who was healed after his mother prayed for Acutis’ intercession.

A second miracle, involving a young Costa Rican girl who was allegedly healed of a head injury after her mother prayed at Acutis’ grave, was also attributed to him.

With both miracles recognized by the Church, Acutis is expected to be canonized, likely in 2025. As the first Catholic saint of the millennium and the first known saint to play video games, Acutis’ youth and relatable nature could prove useful to the Church in its efforts to connect with young people and digital natives.