Teen Likely to Be First Millennial Saint

Italian teen is one step closer to sainthood
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 29, 2020 2:40 AM CDT
We Might Soon Get Our First Millennial Saint
Clouds fly over St. Peter's Square as Pope Francis delivers his Angelus prayer from the window of his studio, small window top, at the Vatican, Sunday, June 14, 2020.   (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

The Catholic Church is one step closer to having its first millennial saint, NBC News reports. A miracle has now been attributed to Carlo Acutis, a London-born Italian teen who died in 2006 at age 15 from leukemia. Carlo taught himself how to program on his family's old computer, and started a website that kept track of miracles around the globe. He was also known for supporting bullied classmates and helping the homeless, and his funeral was attended by an overflow crowd. Many have petitioned the Vatican to name him a saint. He has now been credited with healing a Brazilian boy who prayed to him before recovering from a rare illness. When Carlo developed his interest in God at a young age, his parents weren't even practicing Catholics, the National Catholic Register reports. That soon changed, and his mother credits him with "saving" her.

"Carlo really had Jesus in his heart, really the pureness … When you are really pure of heart, you really touch people’s hearts," his mother tells Catholic News Agency. "Jesus was the center of his day." He will be beatified in October, which is the last remaining step before sainthood, and a second miracle must be approved by a council of scientists. He will ultimately become the patron saint of the internet, and will be one of just a few child saints among the 10,000 or so saints the church recognizes. One expert says Pope Francis could be "sending a message that there is a place for technology and the continued growth of our faith and development of the next generation of Catholics." (More Catholic Church stories.)

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