Catholic parishes are reporting an increase in converting adults across the US
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Catholic leaders across the US are reporting a sharp increase in the number of older adults converting, a trend they say is fueled mostly by young people.
The Archdiocese of Newark, NJ, reported that 1,701 people were preparing to join the Church, a 30% increase from 2025, according to The Catholic Standard. Other Archdioceses are reporting similar increases including Cleveland, Ohio, Boston, Mass., Portland, Ore., according to the outlet.
“Last year, we broke the record for the number of adults who converted, and then this year – so, we have what is called the trend of the election, when all the people enter the church – we broke that record again. So, it is a trend that is visible in the whole church and certainly it has been true in my dioceses,” said Bishop Robert Barron to Fox News Digital.
Catholic ministries on college campuses, including Texas A&M University, the University of Notre Dame and Arizona State University are also reporting an increase in student converts, the Catholic Standard reports. Notre Dame saw its largest group of new Catholics in at least 25 years, with 125 receiving the sacraments last Easter, according to The Catholic Standard. The source noted that this year, Notre Dame expects to have 163 candidates and catechumens, which are unbaptized people who convert.
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An annual Catholic conference aimed at young people has drawn at least 26,000 people to multiple venues, and church leaders say the large turnout reflects the Catholic Church’s progress. (Getty Images)
Barron said that when he talks to young adults about their decision, many describe themselves as “hungry for the truth.” He said the trend was, in part, a response to the rise of atheism in the early 2000s, with younger generations “inheriting a secular world” and now “leading the charge” back to religion.
The bishop pointed to St. Augustine, saying that the religious teacher’s words are still true today.
“St. Augustine said, ‘Lord, you made yourself, so our heart never rests until it rests in you,’ and that’s always true,” Barron said. “There is a longing in the heart that cannot be satisfied by anything in this world, so religion speaks to that.”
Bishop Robert Barron (L), accompanied by President Donald Trump, and other religious leaders, speaks during the National Day of Prayer ceremony in the Rose Garden at the White House on May 1, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
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Bishop also explained that many young people are looking for something strong with strong roots as they navigate the modern world and its internet distractions. In his view, Catholicism has always attracted new converts because of its 2,000-year-old traditions.
“Our culture today is very ephemeral, isn’t it? It’s evanescent … Catholicism speaks to something very deep, old, and permanent,” he said. “I also think that people are attracted to the traditional expression of Catholicism. So, the beauty of our religious service, we don’t just gather in an empty room and sing pop songs, we go into this ancient, beautiful ritual that includes clothes and incense and candles and ancient prayers and ancient songs. And I think that is attractive, especially to the souls of young people.”
Even speaking about the beauty of the Church, Barron touched on the sexual abuse scandals that appeared especially in the early 2000s. He said these scandals are important for the Church to acknowledge and face, but for young converts, they are “a big memory” and “not a real, real thing.”
A woman holds a rosary during a holy mass and prayers for the healing of Pope Francis at the Saint John Lateran archbasilica in Rome, February 23, 2025. (TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images)
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By 2025, the Pew Research Center released its findings on Catholic conversions in the US, saying that 1.5% of all adults in the country would enter the category. According to Pew’s 2025 report, 92% of US Catholics grew up in the faith, and the remaining 8% have converted. The research center said that when asked why they convert to Catholicism, “the most common answer given by converts is because of a spouse, or getting married in the Church.” Meanwhile, some say that Catholicism makes sense to them or fits their values.
Now that the Church has attracted these new converts, it is tasked to keep them. Barron said that first and foremost, the Church must listen to them.
“I think it takes listening to them. You know, that’s what Pope Francis has been emphasizing, rightly so, that first you listen and find out what attracts them, find out what maybe kept them away for a long time, what makes the difference,” Barron told Fox News Digital.
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Barron emphasized that, ultimately, the Church exists for the purpose of bringing people to faith.
“The Church is about the business of preaching the gospel. That is what we are. I mean that all Catholic institutions exist for the purpose of preaching, which means bringing people to Christ. Therefore, people who return to the Church, that makes me very happy. That is why the Catholic Church exists, it is to invite people to come back,” said the bishop.
