June 28, 2026, 5:01 am | Read time: 4 minutes
The Church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Assisi, Italy, has been a pilgrimage site for devout Catholics worldwide for nearly 20 years. Since 2007, it has housed the remains of teenager Carlo Acutis, who was canonized by the pope in 2025. What is behind the veneration of the young man, sometimes referred to as the “patron saint of the internet”? TRAVELBOOK tells the true story of the “first millennial saint.”
In a glass coffin, dressed in jeans and a jacket, Saint Carlo has attracted people from around the world since 2007, fascinated by his life, work, and untimely death at just 15 years old. He is especially an icon for young believers, known today as the “patron saint of the internet” and the “first millennial saint.”
According to “Encyclopedia Britannica,” Carlo Acutis was born on May 3, 1991, in London. Just a few months later, the family moved to Milan because his father, Andrea, took a job as a company chairman there. According to his biography, Carlo developed an interest in the Catholic Church and faith at a very young age. He particularly loved praying the rosary and the Eucharist ceremony, which commemorates the Last Supper.
Praying and Programming
His passion soon inspired his mother so much that she enrolled in theology courses to better answer her son’s many questions. Ultimately, both parents became devout Catholics through Carlo Acutis. Besides the church, the young man had another passion: computer programming and video games in general. However, he imposed a strict limit of one hour of gaming per week on himself to avoid addiction. Together with his parents, he traveled to the birthplaces of significant saints and sites where Eucharistic miracles were said to have occurred.
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Even as a boy, Carlo Acutis helped others. He stood up for classmates who were bullied and once bought a sleeping bag for a homeless person with his pocket money. In a diary, he documented his spiritual development, grading himself for good or, in his view, unworthy behavior. At the tender age of 11, he began building a website about Eucharistic miracles that were said to have occurred worldwide throughout history. He documented 187 such incidents in nearly 20 languages by country and date. Soon, the church took notice of his work.
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“God’s Influencer”
Communities around the globe used the page of young Carlo Acutis. It became an exemplary case of how the internet could be used to spread faith. Consequently, after his death, Carlo received the honorary title “patron saint of the internet.” In an obituary, the “Daily Mail” referred to him even more modernly as “God’s Influencer.” Since his canonization in 2025 by Pope Leo XIV, he has also been called the “first millennial saint.” Unfortunately, the young man with extraordinary abilities and great passion was granted only a very short life on this earth.
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In October 2006, Carlo Acutis died at just 15 years old from an especially aggressive form of leukemia. Only days passed between the diagnosis and his passing. At his own request, his body was exhumed in 2007 and permanently laid to rest in Assisi, Italy. Carlo had chosen this place because it was always inseparably linked to his favorite saint, Francis of Assisi. As early as 2012, there were initial efforts to honor him for his contributions to the Catholic Church with beatification and then canonization. Two miracles attributed to him aided this process.
Miracles and Canonization
In 2020, the miraculous healing of a boy named Matheus Vianna occurred in Brazil. He suffered from a rare pancreatic disorder. After all medical options were exhausted, his mother, according to “Catholic Answers,” prayed to Carlo Acutis. Her son recovered, and the Catholic Church officially recognized the case as a miracle after an investigation. This was followed by a second miracle, the healing of Valeria Valverde, who doctors had given no chance of survival after a severe bicycle accident. Here, too, faith in the prayer to Saint Carlo seemed to help.
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On September 7, 2025, the Catholic Church finally canonized Carlo Acutis. Since then, the hype around the teenager, if possible, has only increased. On his death anniversary, October 12, Catholics celebrate his personal feast day each year. Admission to his final resting place, the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, and access to his grave are free. The church is open daily from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., and on Saturdays, even until 10 p.m.