Pope Leo to canonize the first Millennial saint. Here’s how Miami is celebrating
In a historic move for the Catholic Church, Pope Leo XIV will declare the first ever saint from the Millennial generation this Sunday — and Catholics in Miami are celebrating.
On Sept. 7, Pope Leo will canonize — a ceremonial act that makes a person’s sainthood official — Blessed Carlo Acutis, who was born in 1991, elevating him to the same status as Mother Teresa. Acutis, who was given the title of “Blessed” by the late Pope Francis in 2020, was originally going to be canonized in April, but the ceremony was postponed after Francis’ death on April 21. The canonization is the first such ceremony to be performed by Pope Leo.
Acutis was famed for internet evangelizing and cataloging an online database of miracles, earning him the nickname, “God’s influencer.” The 15-year-old Italian — born in London to Italian parents and later living in Italy — died of leukemia in 2006, but his impact is still felt by the Catholic community worldwide — including in Miami.
Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, another young Italian man known for his charitable heart who died at the age of 24 from polio and lived in the early 1900s, is also being canonized on Sept 7 at a ceremony at the Vatican.
On Saturday night, the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary, a religious institute in the Archdiocese of Miami, are organizing an overnight vigil to honor Acutis and Frassati and celebrate the saint-making ceremony by livestreaming it at 4 a.m. when it begins in Italy.
The vigil, which will be held at St. John Paul II Evangelization Center in Miami, will include a mass, relics from the saints, conversations about becoming a saint in the Catholic church and reflections on the lives of the saints. Participants are encouraged to bring sleeping bags and food.
Much like the saints being honored, the vigil is aimed at young people and families, said Sister Alexia Zaldivar of the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary, one of the organizers of the vigil.
“They’re very recent saints, historically speaking, but they’re also very young men, which is part of why it is so inspiring for us, not just for Catholics, but for people of all faiths,” said Zaldivar.
Zaldivar said because of Acutis’ age and the modern way he lived, many young people are able to relate to him, more so than other saints who lived hundreds of years ago. Acutis, for example, would give up one of his favorite foods, Nutella, to fast for God, and utilized technology to spread the message of the Catholic Church.
“To see a young person who had the capacity to encounter the Lord and His love .... and that it transformed their lives to such a degree that they’re able now to be declared saints in the Catholic Church ... it’s amazing,” she said.
Zaldivar said in an age where more people are turning away from their faith, the declaration of the young saints is inspiring to many Catholics looking towards the future of the church.
“It really speaks about what the Spirit is doing ... in so many ways, the Lord is choosing young people, even children, to be the instrument to bring their family back to the faith,” Zaldivar said.
The vigil, which is from 10 p.m.-6 a.m., will also include an exhibit of Acutis’ work, including his research of what are known as Eucharistic miracles — defined by the church as extraordinary events involving the Eucharist, or what the church believes is the body and blood of Christ, and the ritual commemorating Jesus’ Last Supper. Acutis chronicled 164 such events from all over the world in his digital database.
For Zaldivar, this weekend’s historic sainthood ceremony strikes a personal chord. The 28-year-old has been a Catholic nun, or sister, for 10 years.
“When I felt the call to religious life I was only a teenager,” she said. “Now I have lived 10 years as a sister, the Lord is my everything. And he is not only enough, he is what everybody is looking for.”
Zaldivar said she works with many young people who are indifferent or even disappointed with what life has to offer. She said the vigil is a chance to connect with young people, and offer them an “invitation to follow Christ.”
Becoming a saint
In the Catholic faith, sainthood is reserved for those who have lived a life of heroic virtues, offered their life for others or died for their faith, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The designation typically comes after the person has been dead for decades, even hundreds of years.
The years-long process of becoming a saint includes three stages: first a candidate becomes “Venerable,” then “Blessed” and then “Saint.” For Acutis, this process began in 2013 when the pope named him “a Servant of God.”
At least five years after someone has passed, the pope will decide if a candidate is “Venerable” which is a formal recognition that they’ve lived a life of heroic virtues. Then, according to church law, the candidate will become “beatified” if they have interceded in at least two miracles.
Acutis was designated “venerable” in 2018 and was declared “beatified” or “blessed” by the church in 2020 during a live-streamed Mass in Assisi, Italy, according to Vatican News, making him the first “beatified” person to ever go viral. The Vatican says the first miracle attributed to Acutis was when he is said to have interceded from heaven in 2013 to save the life of a Brazilian child who was suffering from a rare pancreatic disease.
The second miracle attributed to Acutis came from a woman from Costa Rica who prayed at his tomb in Assisi after suffering severe head trauma. The woman, who doctors said had a low chance of survival, was said to have healed miraculously after praying for Acutis to intercede, according to Vatican News.
Acutis was a normal, popular boy with a good sense of humor, according to his mother, Antonia Salzano, who gave an interview ahead of the Miami exhibit in 2022 honoring the life of Acutis. Though his interests were that of a pretty typical child — computing and gaming, playing the saxophone, enjoying soccer and time with his pets — he was also known for his acts of kindness and generosity. He dedicated time to volunteering at soup kitchens and helping the homeless. He used his personal savings to buy a sleeping bag for a homeless man on the way to mass. He often stood up for those who were being bullied.
This story was produced with financial support from Trish and Dan Bell and from donors comprising the South Florida Jewish and Muslim Communities, including Khalid and Diana Mirza, in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners. The Miami Herald maintains full editorial control of this work.
