Pope Leo XIV declares 15-year-old Carlo Acutis as first 'millennial saint'

In a historic move aimed at inspiring young Catholics, Pope Leo XIV on Sunday canonised 15-year-old Carlo Acutis, declaring him the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint.

Dubbed 'God’s influencer', Acutis was celebrated for using technology to spread his faith before his untimely death in 2006.

The canonisation took place during an open-air mass in St Peter’s Square, witnessed by an estimated 80,000 people, many of them young families and millennials. Pope Leo also canonised Pier Giorgio Frassati, a beloved Italian figure who died at 24 and was known for his charitable works.

“The greatest risk in life is to waste it outside of God’s plan,” Pope Leo said during his homily. “The new saints are an invitation to all of us, especially young people, not to squander our lives, but to direct them upwards and make them masterpieces.”

Born in London on 3 May 1991, Acutis moved to Milan shortly after and grew up in a wealthy but not especially religious family. Despite his surroundings, he showed a deep devotion to the Catholic faith from an early age.

Acutis was also fascinated by computer science, studying college-level material as a teenager. He is best known for creating a multilingual website documenting Eucharistic miracles recognised by the Church — an impressive feat for someone so young, especially at a time when website development was largely limited to professionals.

He earned the nickname 'God’s influencer' not only for his tech-savvy evangelism but also his devotion to Eucharistic adoration. He reportedly limited himself to just one hour of video games a week, believing that real human connections were far more important.

In October 2006, Acutis was diagnosed with acute leukaemia and died within days. He was buried in Assisi, the city associated with St Francis, where his glass tomb — showing him dressed in jeans, trainers and a sweatshirt — has since drawn millions of young pilgrims.

Acutis’ body was reportedly well preserved, further fuelling public fascination. Parts of his heart have been sent around the world as relics, while his tomb has become a focal point for young Catholic devotion.

His canonisation had been postponed following the death of Pope Francis earlier this year. Francis had strongly backed Acutis’ cause, believing the Church needed a relatable modern figure to inspire digital-age Catholics.

“It's like I can maybe not be as great as Carlo may be, but I can be looking after him and be like, 'what would Carlo do'?” said Leo Kowalsky, an eighth-grade student at the Blessed Carlo Acutis Parish school in Chicago.

Matthew Schmalz, professor of religious studies at the College of the Holy Cross, noted that Acutis represents “a new saint of simplicity for the ever complex digital landscape of contemporary Catholicism”.

Pope Leo was joined by 36 cardinals, 270 bishops, and hundreds of priests — a turnout that underscored the widespread appeal of both Acutis and Frassati, especially among young Catholics seeking relevance in their spiritual lives.