Italian teenager Carlo Acutis’ upcoming canonization reflects the Vatican’s desire to appeal to a new generation of Catholics

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Michael A. Di Giovine, West Chester University of Pennsylvania

(THE CONVERSATION) The Italian teenager Carlo Acutis, who died in 2006 of a rare form of leukemia at age 15, will soon become the Catholic Church’s first “millennial saint.”

Acutis was a computer programmer who created virtual exhibitions and databases on Eucharistic miracles – when the bread and wine are believed to change into the physical body and blood of Jesus – and the reported sightings of the Virgin Mary. Although the specific date has not been announced, the Vatican indicated that his canonization will occur in 2025 when the church celebrates its jubilee, or holy year that occurs every quarter century.

Canonization is the official term for declaring a person a saint. It requires the verification of a faithful life through an often lengthy research process. This includes confirming two miracles. Acutis’ first miracle was attributed to a Brazilian child who could not eat solid food because of a pancreatic disorder, but was inexplicably healed in 2013 after praying to the teenager. The second involved a Costa Rican student who, after...