PARIS (OSV News) — The record number of adult and teenage baptisms during the Easter Vigil on April 4 drew global attention. French secular media outlets reported on the event in every region, describing it as an “astonishing phenomenon.”

Over 13,200 adults and over 8,100 adolescents were baptized during the April 4 Easter Vigil, according to an annual survey published by the French bishops’ conference March 25.

“It has completely changed my life,” Anne-Cécile Perrier, baptized in St. Louis Cathedral in Versailles on April 4, told OSV News.

Sharing her personal journey toward baptism, she said: “There are always difficult moments. But since I let Jesus and the Holy Spirit into my heart, I know I am not alone. God is with me every moment, and he loves me just as I am. It is extraordinary to be loved and accompanied in this way.”

Perrier is part of a broader French phenomenon of over 21,000 people baptized on Easter.

“It is spectacular,” Le Dauphiné libéré said, describing baptisms by full immersion in the Chambéry Cathedral, near the Alps. In Lyon, the oldest diocese in France, 460 baptisms were reported, compared to 390 in 2025. Normandy alone recorded 555 baptisms.

La République du Centre described the “very sharp rise in baptisms” in Orléans, the city liberated by St. Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years’ War. The Populaire du Centre spoke of numbers “skyrocketing” in Limoges, famous for its porcelain.

In Paris itself, 786 adults were baptized, compared to 671 in 2025, which was already a record. Four of them were baptized by the archbishop of Paris in Notre Dame Cathedral.

Le Parisien reported that 48 young adults and teenagers were baptized by immersion in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, west of Paris, during an outdoor Mass, as the parish church was too small to accommodate the 850 people surrounding them.

Some commentators pointed out that this increase in numbers does not offset the sharp decline in the number of infant baptisms recorded in France over the past 25 years. There were approximately 380,000 babies baptized in 2000, accounting for nearly half the number of births that year. By 2025, that number had dropped to 150,000, less than a quarter of the babies born that year.

Nevertheless, the number of Easter baptisms has more than tripled over the past decade.

“The Church in France feels more than a breeze in its sails,” wrote historian Christophe Dickès, a specialist in contemporary Catholicism, in Le Figaro, referring to a “renewal of faith.” Le Monde described “a transformation of Catholicism in France.” “This apparent vitality reflects the evolution of a once-dominant religion toward a ‘minority’ and ‘trendy’ faith,” it reported.

According to the French bishops’ conference, newly baptized individuals come from a wide variety of social backgrounds, and each has a “unique” story. Many of them shared that an illness, a bereavement or a “decisive encounter” triggered in them a “search for meaning.”

For Perrier, baptized in the Versailles Cathedral, this decisive encounter with a practicing Catholic and further social media Catholic content led to rediscovery of the faith of her ancestors.

“I grew up in a family that was absolutely not religious,” the 26-year-old said. “My parents had been baptized, but they had drifted far away from religion. My grandmothers were believers, but the subject of religion was almost a taboo. It was better to avoid talking about it.”

“As I grew up, I realized that life could be complicated, even very difficult,” Perrier said. “At that time, I met a practicing Catholic, and while talking with him, I explicitly told myself: ‘I have always been told that God does not exist. But maybe he actually does?’ I wanted to learn more about the Christian faith. I found a lot of interesting explanations on social media, thanks to the testimonies from the priests who are active there.”

“These posts on social media are invaluable for those of us who know absolutely nothing” about the Catholic faith, Perrier emphasized. “It also gives you the courage to knock on a church door, which is not easy. I first got involved with the catechumenate to satisfy my curiosity. My journey had already begun, and I had already read the Gospels. But I wanted to go deeper. At a certain point, you can no longer move forward alone.”

When she was welcomed into the parish of the Versailles Cathedral, Perrier felt “incredibly well received.”

“I am amazed at how I was supported,” she said. “Then, little by little, things became clear, and that journey led me to baptism.”

Perrier’s family was there when she was baptized. “My parents agreed to my baptism when they saw how happy I was,” she said. “They even enjoyed the three-hour Easter Vigil. I think they experienced it through my joy.”

Perrier said she will continue to pray once a month with her group of catechumens. “I feel very close to them,” she told OSV News. “Prayer is now part of my life. What I really love is that there are a thousand and one ways to pray. You can pray anywhere, alone or with others, in church or on the subway. Every prayer brings something different.”

In the testimonials shared by the media, the dynamic energy that the newly baptized bring to the dioceses has been frequently mentioned.

“In a few years, when I have deepened my faith even further, I will be happy if I, too, can in turn accompany people who want to learn more,” Perrier concluded.