OK. Let’s take good news where we can get it. K?
VATICAN: As the world seems to be moving away from faith and increasingly more people say they do not identify with any religion, several nations have seen an increase in the number of adults choosing to get baptized and discover Catholicism.
One of these is France where over 13,000 adults were baptized during Easter in 2026. The number of baptisms has increased by 28% in comparison to 2025 and in 10 years has more than tripled.
Several of these newly baptized and catechumens – those who have begun preparing to receive the Sacraments of Christian Initiation – had a chance to see Pope Leo XIV during his visit to the Catholic University of Paris (Institut catholique de Paris) on September 26, as part of his Apostolic Journey to France.
“I see this decision [to convert] as part of a broader sociological trend. Today the Church in France is experiencing something very unique: it is transitioning from a Christianity that was once inherited to a Christianity that is chosen,” 24-year-old Robin, who was baptized in 2023, told Vatican News.
“In the aftermath of World War II, there was a widespread effort in our society to build a society without God—a society indifferent to God. It’s clear that young people aren’t any happier today. On the contrary, they’re even unhappier than before. And I’m part of that generation and that youth that thirsts for God.”
Back to me speaking. Here’s the thing. The long falling away from Catholicism has been written about extensively. Interestingly, the pendulum swinging back has received very very little attention from many of the same media outlets. These are inspiring numbers. Yeah, we’ve got a long way to go. Wait. Let me rewrite that. We’ve got a loooooooooooooooooooooooong way to go. We do. So let’s get to it. If you meet a French person, drag them to the nearest baptismal font. No. I’m kidding. Drag anyone and everyone to a baptismal font even if they’re not French.
But one of the things that I’ve seen is that people in Europe are only attaching themselves to their faith in response to the incoming tide of millions of Islamists swarming the continent. Oooooookay? Isn’t that legitimate? If you’re witnessing firsthand how the world looks through the prism of another religion, it makes perfect sense that you’d reconsider how your country’s culture is based on Christianity.
They will try to say that kids are choosing the traditional Mass as a form of rebellion. They’re practicing fidelity as a form of rebellion? Huh?
