Noa, soon to be baptized: ‘I’ve finally found the path to truth’

“I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” These are the words that thousands of catechumens around the world are preparing to hear on Easter night when they are baptized. Throughout Lent, Aleteia is sharing with you the stories of some of these men and women, who are happy to become children of God. Read all of the testimonies here.

Noa was brought up in a faith-filled environment from childhood! But he says he only found the truth when he was 22. Born into a family of Jehovah's Witnesses, Noa — who is studying management in Narbonne (France) — was very involved in the life of his community.

This, despite his particular family background. “I come from a blended family. I have an older brother and sister, but our parents separated when I was nine. My father remarried and my mother also started a new life with someone else,” explains the young man, originally from Béziers.

Although his mother stopped practising her religion after the divorce, his father continued to attend Jehovah's Witnesses meetings. “I used to go with him when I was at his place, but when I became a teenager, I gradually distanced myself,” he explains.

“What bothered me about Jehovah's Witnesses were their many prohibitions. I was a bit fed up with it. At my mother's house, there were no more obligations; you look for comfort when you're young. I needed freedom,” he recalls.

This distancing disappointed his father. Although for two or three months the atmosphere was tense between the two men, Noa's choice didn’t ultimately damage their relationship. Now, he has another confession to make to his father: on Easter night, he is going to be baptized.

The family is the first school of holiness, as evidenced by the many examples of mother-fathers/daughters-sons who’ve become saints. However, friendship also appears to be a useful and beneficial support. Noa is living proof of this.

“My best friend, Ismaël, became a Catholic. When he received baptism in 2023, he started talking to me about the Church. At first, I was skeptical, and then I started to take an interest,” he explains.

This living testimony was complemented by that of ancient stones. A great lover of France, Noa began to wonder about the heritage of his country and all its churches. “I love everything about churches, whether they’re small or large: the atmosphere, the beauty of the place... It's so wonderful to think that people were able to create these places full of history.”

I love everything about churches, whether they’re small or large.

Although he’d already entered churches to contemplate their interior, he experienced a conversion there one day that is reminiscent of that of Charles Péguy. “The first time I went in to pray, I felt something I had never felt before. I didn't know how to pray, but I got down on my knees in a small church in a village near Narbonne and I spoke from the heart.” Noa soon asked his best friend to take him to Mass.

That's how he met Father Marc-Olivier de Vaugiraud. “He answered the many questions that I had already asked the Jehovah's Witnesses and to which I hadn’t found a satisfactory answer. His answers seemed much more relevant to me. It was exactly what I was expecting. I still have lots of questions, but I know that I have finally found the path to the truth,” says Noa, who quickly wanted to be baptized.

Naturally, he asked his friend Ismaël to be his godfather. “He brought me to God, and he supports me in everything.” Together, they went to Lourdes last year. “It was magnificent! The Stations of the Cross, the Mass, the basilica... I wasn't expecting that!”

His decision to be baptized was well received by his mother, brother, and sister, even though they’ve long since distanced themselves from any faith. “I talk to them about what I'm going through. They tell me that as long as I'm happy and it does me good, I should go for it. I know that sooner or later they’ll ask questions. I will do my best to get them to join the Church in turn,” promises the young man.

He’s putting off discussing the subject with his father, eager to “find the right words and arguments.” Although he can't wait for the Easter Vigil, he also knows that a great responsibility awaits him. “I've started a real change of life,” concludes a happy Noa.