France has seen a dramatic increase in adult baptisms, with 13,234 baptised this Easter.
The figure represents a 20 per cent increase on the previous year and a 220 per cent increase on 2016. The largest cohort comes from 18 to 26 year olds, who make up 42 per cent of the group, with 82 per cent aged 40 or under.
Roughly the same proportion of catechumens declaring no religious tradition, or no known religious tradition (46 per cent), was recorded as those identifying with a Christian religious tradition (45 per cent). At least three per cent came from a Muslim background, though this figure is likely higher due to a reluctance to share amongst those leaving Islam.
