Young, born in Italy, under 30. This is the identikit of someone who “converts”, embraces the faith and asks to become Catholic by receiving, all together in a single celebration, the sacraments of Christian initiation: Baptism, Confirmation and Communion.
They are the catechumens of the Diocese of Milan – the largest in Italy and one of the largest in Europe – children aged at least 14, young people and adults who ask to become Christians after a two-year training journey. Saturday evening, in the Cathedral, during the Easter Vigil to receive the sacraments from the archbishop Mario Delpini they will be in 101: 68 women and 33 men, of which 35 are Italian and 17 from other European countries (12 Albanians, two French, two Spanish, one from the Czech Republic). The oldest is 70, the youngest is 16 but those under 30 are almost half, 44%.
In the Ambrosian Diocese, in line with some large European dioceses starting with France, which has become a real case for the growing number of people who embrace the faith, there has been a continuous increase in catechumens in recent years: in 2023 there were 73, the following year 83 and last year 89. And the proportion of catechumens of Italian nationality is growing proportionately. As Jessica Sangiovanni Gao, 20 years old, student at the Catholic University of Milan whose faith grew slowly, like a “glimmer” to be cherished and understood, until it became a conscious life choice. Jessica today studies International Relations and works as an after-school educator in the Milanese suburbs. A daily commitment that combines study and concrete life «it allows me to combine study with concrete experience in contact with younger people»tells. His was not a sudden conversion, but a journey developed over time, made up of questions and small steps: «My journey of faith was not born suddenly: it has always been present as a small glimmer inside me, something that I felt but that I was not able to fully understand».
That “glimmer”, however, at a certain point asked to be listened to fully. And one meeting was decisive: «Only at a certain point, thanks also to a significant meeting with Don Giorgio Begni, whom I met at the University, I found the drive to truly embrace the Catholic faith in a conscious way.”
His family history tells a complex but open reality: «My adoptive father, despite not being a believer, always supported and respected me in my journey, and this was very important to me.». A silent but fundamental support, which accompanied a personal and free choice. There was not, he specifies, a sudden turning point, but a journey made of growing awareness: «Certainly a fundamental step was when I felt the need to clarify that “glimmer” that I perceived within myself. From there a deeper and more personal journey began in which”, she continues, “I was helped above all by Don Giorgio Begni (one of the pastoral assistants of the Catholic University of Milan, ed.) who was an important guide and a point of reference during my journey of faith”.
A gaze that also extends to her generation, often described as distant from faith, but which Gessica sees differently: «Among my peers, faith and religiosity still exist, even if they are often expressed in different forms than in the past. It is a very personal and intimate journey.” And he adds: “Having shared part of my journey with other kids my age, I can say that, ultimately, faith is still present among young people.”
At the center of his journey there are not just rites or doctrines, but a value that he feels deeply: “A teaching of the Gospel that is particularly close to my heart is that of humanity.” A message that she also learned through those who accompanied her: «It was Don Giorgio who profoundly conveyed this value to me through reading the Gospel: the importance of looking at others with a human and authentic gaze».
In short, in the context of a society often described as secularized, unexpected signs of spiritual research emerge, especially among the youngest. To help us photograph this phenomenon better Don Matteo Dal Santo, diocesan manager of the Service for Catechesis and the Catechumenate of the Diocese of Milan, who offers a careful and detailed reading of the increase in adult catechumens: «The numbers, although growing, are not in themselves sensational. What strikes me most is not so much the quantity but the quality of the phenomenon”, he observes. The most significant element concerns the profile of the new catechumens: «More and more young and more and more often born in Italy and this highlights a clear change compared to the past, when the highest numbers of catechumens were mainly linked to immigrants”.
The catechumens of the Diocese of Milan during the Tradition Symboli vigil in the Duomo with Archbishop Mario Delpini on March 28th
(Francesco Enriquez)
The path that leads to the baptism of adults is structured and profound and lasts about two years: «At the beginning there is an initial moment of welcoming the catechumen and then the rite of admission into the community», explains Dal Santo. A central element is the figure of the catechist, chosen to personally accompany the catechumen, together with the complete reading of the Gospel of Marka text particularly suited to this journey: «Mark is chosen because it is the oldest Gospel, full of questions, synthetic, it gets to the point and to the heart of the issues». It is not just a question of theoretical training: «We also try to insert the catechumen into the life of the community so that it is not just theoretical training but there are relationships». The journey culminates with the celebration of the sacraments in the Easter Vigil, but also continues afterwards, with the so-called “mystagogy”: «It is a short period following the sacraments in which the catechumen is invited to make concrete choices of Christian life».
The personal stories reveal a common trait: «Research is often born within experiences of fragility», explains Dal Santo, «many come from dramatic and tiring events and trials of life: personal difficulties, bereavements, situations in which one experiences limits. But what is personally surprising is the reaction: instead of closing down they went further».
In many cases, a spontaneous prayer experience emerges, prior to conscious faith: «In times of difficulty they began to pray without knowing exactly who they were addressing», explains the priest, «prayer as an invocation when needed precedes conversion and faith». Alongside these experiences, the more ordinary dynamics also remain important: contact with the parish through children, the choice to marry a baptized person, significant encounters or study courses.
According to Dal Santo, the phenomenon should be read as a profound sign of our time: «There are people searching even today, who want answers to give meaning to their existence. Although the cultural context often seems to do without God, questions of meaning remain alive and they find space in the often decisive encounter with Christian people and with parishes which gives rise to journeys of faith.”
This growth also challenges Christian communities: “The biggest difficulty is that parishes and groups are not always able to grasp these paths of research and accompany them”, says the priest, “the presence of a friendly person who knows how to listen and dialogue with these new seekers, but also orient them towards a search for faith starting from the Gospel and in the encounter with the Christian community, remains decisive, especially at the beginning”.
The French case: 21 thousand “new” Christians
What makes the picture even more significant is what is happening in France, where the phenomenon has decidedly larger dimensions and continues, as the bishops observe, to “surprise”. According to data released by the French Episcopal Conference which has prepared an ad hoc dossier, they will be baptized during the Easter Vigil this year approximately 13,200 adults and 8,200 adolescents, for a total of over 21,000 new Christians. The increase is significant: compared to the previous year, adult baptisms grew by 28% and adolescents by 10%. A trend consolidated over time, if we consider that in ten years adult baptisms have more than tripled, going from just over 4,000 in 2016 to over 13,000 today.
The profile of the French catechumens confirms some trends already visible in Italy too, but on a larger scale: the most represented group is between 18 and 25 years old (42%), followed by 26-40 year olds (40%), while women make up approximately 62% of the total. The majority live in urban contexts (71%), but the presence in rural areas is also growing. A significant cultural fact is also striking: the number of people without any declared religious tradition has now reached that of those coming from a Christian background.
The data on adolescents is particularly significant: in 2026 there are over 8,100, distributed in almost all French dioceses, with a clear female prevalence (65%). For them too, as for adults, Baptism is mostly celebrated at the Easter Vigil, often accompanied by Communion, while Confirmation can be postponed to favor a community journey.
The reasons that lead to the request for baptism reveal profound dynamics that are largely similar to those described by Don Matteo Dal Santo: 40% of catechumens declare that they embarked on the journey after “experiencing a difficult event that pushed me to search for meaning”, while 34% talk about “questions about the Christian religion” and 32% about “a strong spiritual experience”. There is no lack of an aesthetic and symbolic dimension: 23% say they were struck by entering a significant place, a sign of how beauty can also reopen paths of faith. To underline the scope of the phenomenon Olivier de Germay, archbishop of Lyon and head of the catechumenate, who admits: «The phenomenon continues to surprise and raise questions. However, we are surprised by the suddenness and extent of the thirst for God that manifests itself today.” A growth that represents at the same time a pastoral challenge: «The great challenge for the Church is to accompany these people over time so that they become disciples». Faced with this “joyful news”, the French dioceses are multiplying initiatives and accompaniment paths, in a dynamism which, as de Germay observes, also produces an unexpected effect: “It is an opportunity for many ‘veterans of Christian life’ to rediscover their faith”.
Boom in conversions also in the United States
Meanwhile, even in the United States, the phenomenon of conversions, especially among young people, is taking on even more evident dimensions. As reported by New York Timesa real record was recorded in this year’s Easter Vigil: in the archdiocese of Detroit alone there will be 1,428 new Catholics, the highest figure in the last 15 years, while a Galveston-Houston it goes from 265 to 400, with an increase of 51%. Even in Washington there is growth, from 1,566 to 1,755 faithful, and more Newark baptisms reach 1,701, compared to 1,000 in 2010. These are largely young people between 18 and 35 years old, a generation marked by isolation and fragility, but also from a renewed search for meaning. The testimony of father Maurizio Maifredi, Scalabrinian missionary in Washington, who underlines how “there is a sincere desire to get closer to the Catholic Church” and how many young people “appreciate a message of hope and a living faith”, no longer linked only to tradition but capable of speaking to the present. A dynamic which, according to the priest, is also linked to the magisterium of Pope Leo XIVoriented towards “values of solidarity and dialogue”, in a time in which “war is only the desperate and tragic response of a humanity that has lost faith in dialogue”.
