In What Ways Does The Spirit Move?

“The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” John 3:8

Perhaps some readers are aware of what appears to be the beginnings of a new birth of the Spirit in the West. We’ve seen it in our own parish and there are increasing reports of the same thing happening across the country—an enormous (relatively speaking) increase in baptisms over previous years. What’s so remarkable in this is that this past generation has witnessed the seemingly unstoppable rise of demonic forces throughout the West, and the prostration of all resistance. Or so it seemed. Even now, we remain on a dark way through the woods. And yet, we may be seeing signs of a reawakening of faith that could bear fruit for future generations. God knows this is welcome to all of us.

It seems that the US isn’t the only country (please follow down to the link to the NYPost article) where people are groping in the dark and reaching out to Christ—for repentance and forgiveness. For meaning in their lives:

Celebrating a Catholic Renaissance in France

With over ten thousand adults across France receiving the sacrament of baptism at this year's Easter Vigil, the Catholic resurgence has the attention of the secular media.

There was cause for celebration for Catholics in France at this year’s Easter Vigil. Figures released by the Bishops’ Conference of France announced that 10,384 adults would receive the sacrament of baptism at the 2025 Easter Vigil. This is an increase of 45 percent over the 7,135 adults who were baptized in 2024 and a 90 percent increase over the 5,463 adults who were baptized in 2023.

According to Église Catholique en France, “13 dioceses (more than 10 percent of all dioceses in France) have more than doubled the number of baptized adults. In ten years, catechumens in France have increased from 3,900 in 2015 to 10,392 in 2025. This is an increase of more than 160 percent.”

Among the new adult catechumens, the 18–25-year-old cohort accounts for more than 42 percent of the catechumens and is surpassing the 26–40 age group. This is a dramatic change considering the fact that in 2020 the number of 26–40-year-old catechumens was double the number of 18–25-year-olds.

Social media—as well as a few mainstream journalists—has noticed. An unprecedented surge in attendance for Ash Wednesday Masses in 2025 led Famille Chrétienne to conclude that it is a “phenomenon never seen before…from Nantes to Nice, from Paris to Bordeaux, the parishes were submerged by a new affluence for the Mass of the Ashes, marking the entrance to Lent…It is noteworthy among the crowd, a massive presence of young people.”

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It is true that France is well-known for its militant secularism. ...

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Dioceses throughout France report that—in addition to the large number of catechumens—there has also been a huge increase in adult “reverts,” Catholics who were baptized in childhood but had stopped practicing their religion during adolescence and then decide to go back to the Church to deepen their faith. ...

Most faithful Catholics, here and in France, see this gift of faith that has been given to France as a sign from Heaven. They know that God will never abandon them, and they believe that He touches their hearts and reveals Himself to all who ask. The bishops of France are pointing to the Jubilee of Young People in Rome for the influx of catechumens, but it is more likely that these new catechumens are simply realizing that they want more meaning in their lives and are unable to find it in the secular society that surrounds them in France—and elsewhere.

One of those new Catholics interviewed in the French media explained her decision by saying that “It’s increasingly hard to make sense of the world in which we are living. I feel there’s a spiritual malaise. It’s up to each of us to find our own path but for me, Catholicism answers my questions.”

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We are beginning to see a similar revival here in the United States as young people are increasingly being drawn to the Catholic Church to find meaning in an ever more chaotic world. For example, a headline in a recent issue of the New York Post reads: “Young People are Converting to Catholicism En Masse— driven by pandemic, internet, ‘lax’ alternatives.”

I really recommend the article from the NYPost—of all places. The Covid Hoax leading to this? I guarantee you that is definitely the last thing that the Hoax inventors had in mind. It’s like the wind.