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(https://nypost.com/2026/10/04/lifestyle/dear-abby-advises-on-a-best-friend-who-wont-stop-calling/) (My best friend calls me four times a week out of boredom)  My best friend calls me four times a week out of boredom    (https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/lifestyle/onlyfans-star-sophie-rain-bashes-pete-davidson-for-mocking-millionaire-influencers/) (OnlyFans star bashes Pete Davidson for mocking women influencers who make millions)  OnlyFans star bashes Pete Davidson for mocking women influencers...                     (https://nypost.com/lifestyle/) Lifestyle  exclusive   Stanford students turn to Catholicism in big numbers in astonishing Gen Z campus revival  By (https://nypost.com/author/annie-gaus/) Annie Gaus    Published  Oct. 4, 2026, 8:15 a.m. ET      See more of our coverage in your search results.        Make California Post a Preferred Source        A Catholic revival is taking hold at exclusive Stanford University as a growing share of Gen Z students embrace the (https://nypost.com/2025/08/21/opinion/young-people-looking-for-answers-in-a-messy-world-are-turning-to-the-catholic-church/) the 2,000-year-old faith .  The campus best known for churning out (https://nypost.com/2023/09/20/stanford-university-to-return-millions-in-donations-from-ftx/) high-achieving tech execs has seen a three-fold increase in Catholic converts — with 46 adults entering the church at Easter this year, up from 14 the year before, according to Fr. Bart Hutcherson, pastor of the Catholic Community at Stanford. It’s an astonishing turnaround at a campus that averaged just four adult baptisms annually for about 30 years, the Dominican priest said.  (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (Fr. Bartholomew Hutcherson, OP)  8     Fr. Bartholomew Hutcherson, OP.  “There is, not just at Stanford, a sense of recovery of tradition and what beauty teaches us about God,” Hutcherson told The California Post. “It’s very, very exciting.”   Hutcherson said he’s sought to make Stanford’s ministries more welcoming to students after he was appointed pastor roughly three years ago. The Catholic-curious coeds are drawn to traditional forms of worship, he said — complete with age-old hymns played on a pipe organ, Latin prayers and the ornate Byzantine details at Stanford Memorial Church.  Explore More  (https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/lifestyle/porn-star-lindsay-brooke-kills-your-fantasy-with-honest-answers-about-the-industry/) (porn star q+a comp)    (https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/lifestyle/porn-star-lindsay-brooke-kills-your-fantasy-with-honest-answers-about-the-industry/) Veteran porn star ‘kills your fantasy’ with honest answers about the industry — and whether size really matters      (https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/lifestyle/one-specific-group-of-married-americans-has-more-sex-and-happier-marriages-than-others-study/) ()    (https://nypost.com/2026/10/03/lifestyle/one-specific-group-of-married-americans-has-more-sex-and-happier-marriages-than-others-study/) One specific group of married Americans has more sex and happier marriages than others: study      (https://nypost.com/2026/10/02/lifestyle/supermarket-voted-best-grocery-store-in-america-as-customers-praise-variety-of-offerings/) (Produce department at the Fresh Market grocery store.)    (https://nypost.com/2026/10/02/lifestyle/supermarket-voted-best-grocery-store-in-america-as-customers-praise-variety-of-offerings/) Supermarket voted best grocery store in America as customers praise variety of offerings            (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (A general view of the Stanford University campus, including Hoover Tower, with foothills in the background and a running track in the foreground.)  8     A general view of the campus of Stanford University, including Hoover Tower, is seen from Stanford Stadium before a college football game against the Oregon Ducks in Palo Alto, California, Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021. Getty Images   (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (Fr. Bart baptizing freshman Nick Mendez at the Easter vigil at Stanford Memorial Church.)  8     Fr. Bart baptizes freshman Nick Mendez during the Easter vigil at Stanford Memorial Church in 2026. Sloane Wehman   Six hundred Stanford students packed into a recent Saturday afternoon Mass of the Holy Spirit — hundreds more than Hutcherson would have expected just a couple of years ago.  Contrary to the “pay, pray and obey” tropes about Catholicism, the priest said brainy and motivated Stanford students are often first attracted to Catholicism on an intellectual basis, educating themselves on church’s history and centuries-old philosophical traditions before taking the plunge.  That was true of Obi Nnorom, a sixth-year PhD student in electrical engineering who converted this year. After growing up Protestant, Nnorom spent a year studying immersing himself in the writings of church fathers, early martyrs, catechism and Catholic philosophers like St. Thomas Aquinas. He read books and watched YouTube videos, eventually finding himself “astounded” by its more than 10,000 saints and early martyrs who formed the early church.  (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (Stanford PhD student Obi Nnorom stands in front of a sign for Oak Ridge National Laboratory.)  8     Stanford PhD student Obi Nnorom is shown in this undated photo. Obi Nnorom   “That ultimately definitely had a major impact on my conversion,” said Nnorom, 27. “The intellectual tradition of Catholicism shocked me beyond belief.”  “It was humbling to see how much work had been done for 2,000 years. And to me, it made so much sense that our Lord had left us a church,” he added. (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (People line up for communion during a Catholic Mass.)  8     People line up to receive the Eucharist at a Catholic Mass on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023. Djavan Rodriguez – stock.adobe.com   (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (People walk on the Stanford University campus beneath Hoover Tower.)  8     People walk on the Stanford University campus beneath Hoover Tower, Friday, March 15, 2019. AP   Stanford isn’t alone in a trend of college co-eds enchanted by Catholic teachings. According to data released by the prayer app Hallow, participation in the Order of the Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA) on college campuses surged by 115% on average from the 2024-25 school year to 2025-26. That included both campuses in red states, such as Kansas State University and Texas A&M, and more liberal-leaning campuses such as University of Southern California, Harvard, and Columbia University.  “All of this has happened at USC with zero marketing. Nothing,” said Deacon Paul Pesqueira of University of Southern California (https://hallow.com/blog/new-data-shows-a-surge-in-catholicism-on-u-s-college-campuses/) in a statement. “Always word of mouth.” Stanford beat the curve, tripling the number of initiations since last year.  (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (The Catholic Community at Stanford's Easter Vigil initiation class posing with their sponsors inside a church.)  8     The Catholic Community at Stanford’s Easter Vigil initiation class poses with their sponsors in Stanford in 2026. Nicole Hooley   (stanford-university-sees-catholicism-surge-among-gen-z-students.html#) (Open a slideshow of all 8 article images.) (Students holding lit candles while walking down the aisle of a church.)  8     Students participate in Mass. FacebookCatholicCommunityStanford   Quinn Healy, a Stanford student-athlete who plays water polo, described her conversion to Catholicism in  in Valley Catholic, a magazine for the (https://thevalleycatholic.org/christ-embodied-stanfords-record-ocia-year) Diocese of San Jose .   “I felt like I had found something lasting, not another accomplishment to chase, but a relationship with Christ that brought a deeper sense of peace, purpose, and fulfillment into my life,” she said.    The Chicago-born Pope Leo XIV has been credited with inspiring young Americans to undergo the sacraments.  Some young Gen Z converts have cited (https://nypost.com/2026/04/02/lifestyle/gen-z-catholic-influencers-on-tiktok-and-instagram-are-making-the-church-cool/) Catholic social media influencers and YouTube channels as their entree into the Church of Rome (https://nypost.com/2025/04/17/lifestyle/why-young-people-are-converting-to-catholicism-en-masse/?_gl=1*mz0vmp*_gcl_au*NzMzODI0MzE2LjE3OTEwNjkyOTY.) in a quest to understand their role in the world.  Hutcherson said much of the trend boils down to a search for beauty. “In Catholic tradition, beauty is a transcendental experience. Young people, they seem more willing to say:  That’s beautiful, and I can see God in that.”   Filed under (https://nypost.com/tag/catholic-church/) catholic church   (https://nypost.com/tag/colleges-and-universities/) Colleges and universities   (https://nypost.com/tag/gen-z/) gen z   (https://nypost.com/tag/northern-california/) Northern California   (https://nypost.com/tag/stanford/) stanford   (https://nypost.com/2026/10/04/) 10/4/26    (https://nypost.com/2026/10/04/lifestyle/the-5000-armed-vigilantes-who-took-over-san-francisco/) Read Next  (https://nypost.com/2026/10/04/lifestyle/the-5000-armed-vigilantes-who-took-over-san-francisco/) It's a good time to remember the 5,000 armed vigilantes wh...               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Bartholomew Hutcherson, OP)   Fr. Bartholomew Hutcherson, OP.   (A general view of the Stanford University campus, including Hoover Tower, with foothills in the background and a running track in the foreground.)   A general view of the campus of Stanford University, including Hoover Tower, is seen from Stanford Stadium before a college football game against the Oregon Ducks in Palo Alto, California, Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021. Getty Images   (Fr. Bart baptizing freshman Nick Mendez at the Easter vigil at Stanford Memorial Church.)   Fr. Bart baptizes freshman Nick Mendez during the Easter vigil at Stanford Memorial Church in 2026. Sloane Wehman   (Stanford PhD student Obi Nnorom stands in front of a sign for Oak Ridge National Laboratory.)   Stanford PhD student Obi Nnorom is shown in this undated photo. Obi Nnorom   (People line up for communion during a Catholic Mass.)   People line up to receive the Eucharist at a Catholic Mass on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023. Djavan Rodriguez - stock.adobe.com   (People walk on the Stanford University campus beneath Hoover Tower.)   People walk on the Stanford University campus beneath Hoover Tower, Friday, March 15, 2019. AP   (The Catholic Community at Stanford's Easter Vigil initiation class posing with their sponsors inside a church.)   The Catholic Community at Stanford's Easter Vigil initiation class poses with their sponsors in Stanford in 2026. Nicole Hooley   (Students holding lit candles while walking down the aisle of a church.)   Students participate in Mass. 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