Pope Declares Teen Coder Carlo Acutis As Youngest Millennium Saint; Mumbai Catholics Celebrate His Canonisation

On Sunday, Pope Leo XIV announced two new saints, including a London-born Italian origin teenaged coder, Carlo Acutis, who died of leukaemia in October 2006 after a short but remarkable life dedicated to public service and devotion.

Mumbai’s Preparations and CAS Initiative

In Mumbai, the city's Roman Catholic community has been preparing for the declaration of the youngest millenium saint. The process began with church members launching an event called CAS (Carlo Acutis Squad), with the diocesan youth centre sending small groups of young people into Mumbai's streets in January 2021 with blankets for those sleeping on the streets, like Acutis did in the cities where he lived.

Acutis was declared a saint in a declaration called canonisation, along with Pier Giorgio Frassati, a young Italian humanitarian who died in the 1920s. Acutis died at the age of 15, making him one of the youngest Catholic saints. Miracles, including that of the healing of a 21-year-old woman in Costa Rica after a severe accident, have been attributed to prayers to Acutis as an intercessor.

Faith and Simplicity in Assisi

Deacon Ivan Fernandes, director of the Diocesan Youth Centre, Archdiocese of Bombay, who travelled to Rome and Assisi, the town where the new saint now rests, to collect his relics for its tour of India, said in his description of the visit: 'There, before the resting place of a teenager in sneakers and jeans, I saw faith, life, and suffering woven together into a testimony that strengthened my own faith.'

Acts of Service and Compassion

Fernandes, who met Acutis's parents, said that he heard that the teenager from a well off family saved money given to him to buy extra sneakers to purchase sleeping bags for the homeless. “He became famous not because of the church but because the large gathering at his funeral, a testimony to the large number of people who he had helped,” said Fernandes.

A Cyber-Apostle of the Eucharist

Acutis was a computer whiz, having started coding when he was nine or ten years of age. He used his skills to document miracles of the eucharist, the Christian rite of communion. As he used technology to make faith accessible, his followers regarded him as a cyber-apostle. “In a light vein, it can be said he will be the first saint to tell Jesus in heaven that he has an e-mail id,” said Fernandes.

Devotion to Nature and St Francis of Assisi

Apart from his knowledge of information technology and his good deeds, he believed in the conservation of the natural environment and was devoted to St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecology and animals. For this reason, Carlo's tomb is located in Assisi's Sanctuary of the Renunciation, where St Francis himself had lived.

Standing Against Bullying

He was also a campaigner against bullying in school. He said he wanted to raise money to be used in India for charity. "This could be because when he was a child, he was cared for by an Indian woman,” said Fernandes.

Relics in India

The relics of Acutis were brought to Mumbai in 2022 and travelled to various parts of India, where people lined up to welcome it. In Mumbai, church members have prayers for St Carlo Acutis' intercession in bringing good wellbeing to vulnerable teenagers.  

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