Newly baptized Catholic: France moving from inherited to a chosen Christianity
A newly baptized Catholic and two catechumens preparing to receive the Sacraments of Initiation share with Vatican News their stories of discovering the faith, saying that seeing the Pope gives them hope for the future.
By Isabella H. de Carvalho – Paris
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.
On Saturday, 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.”
Robin: Discovering the faith through priests and a French intellectual
Robin is a student in Paris and grew up in an Evangelical Protestant family and is the 8th of 9 siblings. He explained that he was raised in a “demanding culture of faith that was centered on a personal relationship with Christ.”
What he discovered in the Catholic Church that touched him was “the communal dimension of faith, that is a faith lived in communion, lived with the people of God, lived within the Catholic Church in its universal sense.”
“It was this message that deeply moved me,” he noted.
He highlighted how even though his family was of a different faith, he was still in contact with Catholic culture often in his youth, as his parents were involved in bioethical issues to which the Church is also committed. He also attended camps organized by the European Scouts and visited many churches and abbeys.
“How I formally came to the faith though was largely through conversations with priests at the St. Louis parish in Paris, as well as through reading extensively — particularly the writings of Charles Péguy [a French poet and essayist, who rediscovered his Catholic faith in his later years], which deeply moved me and led me to where I am today,” Robin said.
His family also reacted well to his conversion and he said they encourage and support each other in the faith: “Fundamentally, and I think this is the most important thing to remember, we’re all still Christians, so there wasn’t any radical change. There was simply another religious tradition that resonated more with me.”
Robin was also very happy to get to participate in the event with the Pope, which he had already seen during the Jubilee for Youth in August 2025 in Rome. “To see him again in Paris, in my country, specifically in the capital, is truly a great honor for us, a great honor for France, the eldest son of the Church,” he said.
“I see in Pope Leo a commitment to working toward the unity of the Church and to harnessing the power of youth.”
By Isabella H. de Carvalho – Paris
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.
On Saturday, 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.”
Robin: Discovering the faith through priests and a French intellectual
Robin is a student in Paris and grew up in an Evangelical Protestant family and is the 8th of 9 siblings. He explained that he was raised in a “demanding culture of faith that was centered on a personal relationship with Christ.”
What he discovered in the Catholic Church that touched him was “the communal dimension of faith, that is a faith lived in communion, lived with the people of God, lived within the Catholic Church in its universal sense.”
“It was this message that deeply moved me,” he noted.
He highlighted how even though his family was of a different faith, he was still in contact with Catholic culture often in his youth, as his parents were involved in bioethical issues to which the Church is also committed. He also attended camps organized by the European Scouts and visited many churches and abbeys.
“How I formally came to the faith though was largely through conversations with priests at the St. Louis parish in Paris, as well as through reading extensively — particularly the writings of Charles Péguy [a French poet and essayist, who rediscovered his Catholic faith in his later years], which deeply moved me and led me to where I am today,” Robin said.
His family also reacted well to his conversion and he said they encourage and support each other in the faith: “Fundamentally, and I think this is the most important thing to remember, we’re all still Christians, so there wasn’t any radical change. There was simply another religious tradition that resonated more with me.”
Robin was also very happy to get to participate in the event with the Pope, which he had already seen during the Jubilee for Youth in August 2025 in Rome. “To see him again in Paris, in my country, specifically in the capital, is truly a great honor for us, a great honor for France, the eldest son of the Church,” he said.
“I see in Pope Leo a commitment to working toward the unity of the Church and to harnessing the power of youth.”
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