Searches for “how to become Catholic” increased by 373 per cent across the world between April 20 to 26, according to analysis of data from Google Trends. Source: The Tablet.
Pope Francis appeared in public in Rome on April 20 to bless the Easter crowd, and then died on April 21.
The data, by Vatican Tickets & Tours, reveals that searches for how to become Catholic increased by more than three times, which they say is “unprecedented”.
“Pope Francis was loved and respected throughout the world, and his influence is shown clearly in the increasing number of people researching the Catholic faith at the time of his final public appearance and death,” Magdalena Petrusic, travel expert at Vatican Tickets & Tours, said.
Interest in the Catholic faith and the Church worldwide is expected to grow still further as the College of Cardinals prepares to meet in the Sistine Chapel tomorrow to begin the process to elect a new pope.
The new data follows research published last month by the Bible Society, which shows a rise in Gen Z Catholic attendance, with young adults aged 18-34 among those newly drawn to Christian beliefs after years of declining congregations
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Huge increase in searches for ‘how to become a Catholic’ following death of Pope Francis (By Ruth Gledhill, The Tablet)
