Vatican

Pope Leo Declares Two New Saints, Including First Canonized Millennial

Published SEP 9 2025

Story

Above: Pope Leo declares Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati saints on Sept. 7, 2025. Image credit: Maria Grazia Picciarella/Middle East Images/AFP/Getty Images

The Facts

Pope Leo XIV declared two new saints, Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati, during a Mass in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on Sunday, with an estimated 80,000 people in attendance.
Vatican News
The two are the first saints canonized in his pontificate, which started four months ago. His predecessor, Pope Francis, intended to declare Acutis and Frassati saints in separate ceremonies on April 27 and at the end of August, respectively.
America Magazine
ap
The first millennial saint, Acutis died from leukemia in 2006 at age 15. He has been dubbed "God's Influencer" for creating a multilingual website documenting Church-recognized Eucharistic miracles.
FOX News
ap
Frassati lived from 1901 to 1925 and died of polio at age 24. He became known for his devotion to serving the poor and carrying out acts of charity, joining the Catholic-inspired Italian People's Party after the First World War.
America Magazine
ap
The path to sainthood requires candidates to be declared venerable, then beatified after Vatican experts confirm a miracle occurred as a result of the venerable's intercession. They are canonized after a second miracle.
CNN
New York Post
Miracles attributed to Acutis and Frassati are, respectively, the healings of a boy with pancreatic malformation in 2013 and of a girl who had suffered a severe head injury after a bike accident in 2022, and those of a laborer from Pott's disease in 1933 and of a seminary student from an Achilles tendon injury in 2017.
CNN
New York Post

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

The Church desperately needs contemporary role models who can connect with young people in the digital age, so it was all too convenient to back the marketing campaign of the Acutis, who have the wealth and connections to carry out such a marketing campaign. That the Church's miracle-judging panel isn't an independent body and that its starting point is that miracles do happen only encourages further questioning.

Atlantic

Spectator (UK)

Politico

Narrative B

Acutis and Frassati have authentic holiness that transcends any marketing campaign, exemplifying a masculinity rooted in service and compassion and offering hope in a world where toxic influences dominate social media and young men struggle with purpose. The speed of their canonizations reflects genuine popular devotion and the Church's recognition of saints who lived extraordinary lives of faith and charity.