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Why so many women are converting to Catholicism

September 4, 2026 · 1 min read

(RNS) — Ask an evangelical what separates them from Rome, and they’ll likely mention Mary. Ask a Catholic convert why she crossed over, and she might say the same thing. Nothing divides evangelical Protestants from Catholics quite so visibly as Mary.

But beneath that divide lies deeper questions about authority, tradition, worship and what it means to belong to the Church.

Over the past year as a writer and podcast host, I’ve spoken extensively with Protestant women who converted to Catholicism, as well as academics and those studying the forces behind this shift.

The conversion pattern is real: Catholic dioceses across the country have reported striking increases in converts, with some seeing their numbers rise by 70% to nearly 90% in a single year.

Eastern Orthodoxy — another liturgically “thick” tradition — has seen a similar surge, with 65% of its converts coming from Protestant backgrounds, according to the Orthodox Studies Institute.

For many women converting to Catholicism, the Mary factor indeed looms large.

“Catholicism is one of the few religions that respect and revere women,” Genileigh Wentworth, a 37-year-old convert, told me.

She’d cycled through…

Source: Religion News Service · Read the full story →

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Michal Šimko

Here in Prešov, it seems to me that those women who come to faith more often end up in the Orthodox Church than in the Catholic Church. Mary is not as big a topic for us as it is for evangelicals, but the respect for tradition and for the service is. Genileigh is right that respect for women is visible there, but here it is equally true for the Mother of God.

Ivana Kováčová

You are right, in Prešov it really seems that Orthodoxy attracts more women looking for a deeper tradition. Here in the church of St. Mikuláš, I have seen at least three such converts in the last two years, who spoke mainly about the church service and how they feel at home there. I wonder if you have noticed any difference in how they perceive the respect for the Mother of God in our country compared to the Catholics.

Γιάννης Κωνσταντίνου

In Greece I see the same with Orthodoxy. Women who come from Protestant groups often talk about the Virgin Mary and a sense of belonging to something old and stable, as Genileigh says. In our church here in Thessaloniki we have had two such ladies in recent years, and both started from the same question about Tradition and worship.

Φωτεινή Παναγιωτοπούλου

I agree, John. And in Larissa we have a lady who came last year from an evangelical church and she was telling me how much she missed the Mother of God when she prayed alone. The same goes for the sense of Tradition, that you don't start from scratch every Sunday. You in Thessaloniki, do you help them with a catechism course or just let them come?

Θεοδώρα Μακρή

I agree, Fotini, Theotokos does fill a void that many don't realize until they discover her. In Volos, the lady who came from pentecostals last year told us exactly the same thing about Tradition, that you don't start from scratch every time. Do you in Larissa do a separate catechism course for such cases?

Ηλίας Μακρής

I agree Fotini, the Virgin does give a warmth that is missing from many evangelical prayers. Here in Thessaloniki we do catechesis every Wednesday night in the chapel, more of a discussion about the Fathers and the liturgy, not just a lesson. How do you in Larissa organize it?

Κώστας Παπαδόπουλος

Yes, the Mother of God does give a motherly stability that many Protestant churches lack. In Patras last year we had two evangelical women who said exactly the same thing about Tradition – that you don't reinvent the wheel every Sunday. Do you in Volos do catechesis together with the men or separately for the women who come?