From the magazine

The secrets of ‘God’s influencer’

Paul Wood
 Getty Images
EXPLORE THE ISSUE 03 May 2025
issue 03 May 2025

Assisi

In a medieval church built of white stone, pilgrims and tourists shuffle past the body of a 15-year-old boy in a tomb with a glass side. The boy is handsome, with dark curly hair, and wears a blue tracksuit top, jeans and Nike trainers. Everyone peers through the glass and some realise, with a start, that the perfectly preserved face and hands are eerily lifelike silicone.

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