An Italian model once crowned as the “most beautiful man” has announced his plans to give up on dreams of fame and fortune to enter the priesthood. Edoardo Santini said in a video posted to social media, “At 21 years of age, I find myself on the path toward becoming a priest, God willing. I’ve decided to give up modeling work, acting and dance, but I won’t abandon my passions. I’ll just live them differently.”
Santini said he would be “offering” his passions “to God” now that he has found his life’s purpose. He entered a seminary and started his studies. According to Italian outlet II Globo, he grew up near Florence and won fashion group ABE’s 2019 pageant, earning the title of “most beautiful man” at only 17 years old. He’s also won swimming competitions. On his Instagram account, which typically serves as a promotional platform for his modeling work, Santini recently started posting questions about faith, writing last year that he “discovered the real Chruch, which I thought was dead,” according to The Times UK.
Santini admitted recently that he was “scared to go deeper” but that he went to live with two priests last year to get a sense of the lifestyle and called it “the most beautiful experience of my life.” The Times reported that the Catholic Church has found it challenging to recruit new priests, with numbers dropping by almost two-thirds over the past few decades: The church trained just over 2,100 new priests in 2019, compared with over 6,300 in 1970.
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Santini has over 11,000 followers and has added “I’m a Christian priest wannabe” to his profile description. He said of his lifestyle change, “Obviously, some people talk about me behind my back, some people have no problem telling me I have let them down, both inside and outside my family, but others are supporting me, believers and non-believers.” He affirmed his choice, saying he would have no regrets because “I can shout: ‘I am Edoardo, I am 21, and I am happy’” after entering the seminary.
Santini said the path to his new vocation was filled with people who inspired him to pursue his dream. He said, “I have had the opportunity to meet some young people who… have given me the strength to investigate this question that I have carried with me since I was little, but which various fears prevented me from exploring further.”
He added, “In recent years, I have met wonderful people who have given me so much and allowed me to experience art. I won’t abandon everything because my passions are part of me, but I will live them and propose them again in different contexts.” Santini said in his video, “Will I become a priest? I don’t know; I am here to discover. But I have taken the step that terrorized me, that stopped me from finally being myself. I am ready to say I made a mistake.”