Child and youth martyrs throughout the history of Christianity are few. New emphasis on their presence in the twentieth century raises questions about the nature of sanctity. Using a new data set on child, adolescent, and youth martyrs beatified and canonized since 1588, this article discusses early modern to contemporary models of sanctity for males and females while at the same time showing how the ancient motif of puer senex continues to be relevant in their narratives. With Catholic teachings adapting to contemporary views on child agency and autonomy, several problems arise, requiring the Church to re-evaluate its models of sanctity for young people.

Since Pope John Paul II's stock-taking of twentieth century martyrs, the Catholic Church has significantly increased the beatification and canonization of martyrs.  Not only have the numbers of martyrs increased but the definition of martyrdom has expanded.  Using a comprehensive new data set on Catholic martyrs (1588-2020), we argue that the Vatican's recent emphasis on martyrs is a strategic response to competition with Protestants, especially Evangelicals.  Martyrs, unlike regular saints (confessors),  tend to be predominantly male and died in parts of the world where the Catholic Church was actively involved in evangelization or had a significant presence.  Martydom often associates with violent events, such as the Spanish Civil War, World War II, and the French Revolution, and with mass persecutions such as in the case of the English Reformation or in cases of repression of missionaries, as in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and China.

Using a set of interviews with Pentecostal churches in Guatemala, this study makes the following conclusions about the role of family and kinship in this segment of Latin America's rapidly expanding evangelical population.  First, evangelization deliberately targets family members. Second, church growth does in fact take place primarily along kinship lines.  Third, the family structure is the foundation of church organization.  Fourth, the extended family serves an important role as the provider of a social safety net.  Fifth, the emphasis on "rapid discipling" along kinship lines carries with it a weakening of commitment to the inculcation of specific values and beliefs.