The Bishop of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, on synodality, the Western contraction of the Church, and the new breed of young priests
By Barbara Middleton for Inside the Vatican
Bishop Gerard Battersby, 64, was installed in 2024 as the 11th bishop of the Diocese of La Cross, Wisconsin. Bishop Battersby was a “late vocation” — an increasing phenomenon of the 21st century Church; as much as 50% of seminary students fit this description in many dioceses. He graduated from Wayne State University in Detroit with a degree in biology after planning to go to medical school. Instead, though, he found employment in the pharmaceutical industry, then later in his father’s business, before deciding to enter the seminary when he was in his 30s.
Inside the Vatican correspondent Barbara Middleton spoke with Bishop Battersby about his vocation as a priest and a bishop in contemporary society and the challenges facing the Catholic Church in 2025.
Bishop Battersby’s coat-of arms. His motto “In Sinu Patris” (“in the bosom of the Father”) is a short version of the passage in John’s Gospel, 1:18: “No one has ever seen God. The only Son, God who is in the bosom of the Father, has revealed him”
Barbara Middleton: What would you highlight about your early life and how that influenced your vocation?
Bishop Gerard Battersby: I grew up in a multi-generational household. My dad’s mom and dad lived with us so we had the pleasure not only of eight siblings but also my grandparents, and also aunts and uncles from time to time. My grandparents were devout Catholics who attended daily Mass when they were able, and a daily afternoon rosary would be recited along with the Seven Sorrows of Mary devotion.
My longest memory of growing up included, beyond the normal rhythm of daily life, a large dollop of laughter. It is, besides love, my deepest memory of growing up.
Why did you choose the diocesan priesthood rather than a religious community?
The priests who served our local parish were diocesan clergy. My uncle was a diocesan priest, and it simply was what I knew. During the seminary years I discerned a possible vocation to the contemplative life, but soon realized the diocesan priesthood suited my personality and gifts better.
My family was very important to me, and I couldn’t imagine my life without some closeness to them. As I matured in my vocation, I was freer to see the beauty in a religious order vocation but the diocesan charism of ministering as a father to a parish family remains deeply attractive.
How did your family react to your decision to enter the seminary?
My parents were happy for me but they were concerned that should be happy as a priest. My siblings and friends were mostly supportive. Some people thought it was a logical choice, others less sure. One of my friends told me that some of my friends thought I had “sold out” — to what, I’m not sure, but somehow to The Man.
One of the things that surprises me is that a lot of my friends saw this as more of a career move rather than a movement of the Holy Spirit. Not perceiving the mystical nature of the Church, only the institutional side makes sense to them. A vocation to the priesthood is a call within the call of discipleship. While everyone is not called in this way, everyone is called to following Christ and seeking to become holy as our Father in heaven is holy, through a devout sacramental life and a life of imitative virtue.
Cardinal Raymond Burke with Bishop Gerard Battersby, the 11th bishop of LaCrosse, Wisconsin, at his installation. Cardinal Burke, the 8th bishop of LaCrosse, was one of Bishop Battersby’s predecessors.
What do you think the Church can do to inspire young people to choose a religious life?
The Church can and will inspire young people by living the Catholic faith with integrity of heart. Young people are sensitive to incongruity, that is, the profession of faith without a concomitant living of the faith. As a Christian rock group wrote many years ago, professing Christ’s name without following him is something unbelievers find unbelievable. If we who are Jesus’ friends are not inspired by him, how can we expect others to know that knowing Jesus is the single most important thing that can happen to any human being?
How do you think we can effectively prepare our priests to face the challenges of contemporary society?
Grace builds on nature. Our society is not good at forming mature and healthy young men and women. For a person to be fully alive in Christ they must be fully human. Developing, in a balanced and mature way, the authentic virtues of men and women will enable them to understand their own dignity and espy in Christ a dignity worthy of their own self-gift. Man has been made in God’s image and likeness; in Christ they are made capax dei. Their dignity is such that only a worthy expenditure of life and their gifts on something noble is fitting for one elevated by grace to such a degree.
What are your thoughts on the Eucharistic Revival taking place in the American Church right now?
When I talk to bishops all over the country, many have a sense that the Holy Spirit is acting in a particular way to bring about renewal. The Eucharist is at the very heart of our faith, it is a mystical representation of the cross. It is the place where salvation is found; the sacraments flow from the opened side of Christ, the pattern for discipleship is raised up before all creation: that the blood of Christ defeats man’s bitterest enemy, death.
The fruit of the sacrifice is bread and wine transformed by the words of the Only Begotten Son, that by the power of the Holy Spirit we are made living tabernacles, that we might, as Archbishop Allen Vigneron wrote in his Pastoral Letter, Unleash the Gospel, reproduce in our lives the self-gift of Christ, being sent to do what St. Matthew records Jesus saying before he Ascended, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.” (cf. Matthew 28:19)
It is my sense that the Eucharistic Renewal that is presently occurring was preceded by, and will be accompanied by, a Marian Renewal as well. Mary is first in the Body of Christ, where Christ is, and she appears with all the Church in her train, gathering as always at the foot of the cross — seeking aid and comfort, graces on behalf of Christ’s people. Pope St. Paul VI wrote in his apostolic letter, Marialis Cultus, that Mary is intrinsic to the Eucharist; the one who stood at the cross of her Son stands with her children, in an identical way, at the Eucharistic banquet from which all grace tends and flows.
What does synodality mean to you, and how do you see this being implemented in the Church?
It seems to me that the vision of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council foresaw and intended that an everdeeper listening to the Holy Spirit be part of the renewal intended by the Council Fathers. Synodality is a coming together of bishops and now consultative groups so that the fullest listening to the Holy Spirit may be accomplished.
The infallibility of the sensus fidelium is an important teaching of the Council Fathers — but it is only true when the sensus fidelium is in union with the bishops of the Church. Rogue elements can never be received, and ideological action is always contrary to the movement of the Holy Spirit.
I believe the recent Synod in Rome is an effort to be faithful to the vision of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council, endeavoring to implement their vision in our present context. Synodality is a way forward when it is not an agendized listening, but a faithful listening to the movement of grace, which is not disconnected from the movement of grace down through the history of the Church.
Let us not just listen to each other, but let us listen to the Apostles, the early Church Fathers, the Magisterium of the ages, the saints, men and women skilled in listening to the Holy Spirit. Let us be democratic and give both the living and the dead a chance to offer the fruit of their listening.
Some parts of the Church are going through a period of contraction: merging/closing parishes, fewer priests, lower Mass attendance, etc. What do you think is the future of the Church in these areas?
The Church experiences the ebbs and flows of demographic movement, natural disasters, wars and plagues. North Africa was the most vibrant part of the Church in the world; in [a period of] decades she became an outpost of Christians. Times change; what cannot change is our focus on Jesus Christ.
There is the apostasy of a significant segment of the Church. The future of the Church in these regions, formerly centers of faith, is a smaller and perhaps more vigorous future where the Catholic infrastructure will be limited much more than in the past.
But the Church does not rise or fall on the vagaries of demographics, but she sees the movement of a small band of witnesses, down through the centuries, moving toward a denouement of history where the One who rose, victorious over sin and death, will be Lord of all and whose enemies will be placed under his feet. We have nothing to fear; we only need to press into the truth of Jesus’ Lordship, and with the tools he gives us in every age, proclaim him and carry his love into the world and time in which he has seen fit to place us.
Some teachers in our Church have voiced concerns about younger priests. You spent part of your ministry in seminary formation. What are your insights on this younger generation of men?
I had the privilege of being part of a formation team at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit. When I was ordained, there was much complaining about the younger priests too. They were “too conservative.” I didn’t know what that meant then and I don’t know what it means now. If Jesus is who he says he is, then pressing into that truth with every fiber of our being is the single most important thing we can do.
Loving Jesus isn’t a political stance but a movement of the heart. I wasn’t conservative, I was set ablaze with encountering him anew. The generation before me had the task of implementing the vision of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council. This was a heady time and a time of experimentation — sometimes irresponsible experimentation, unfastened from scripture and Tradition.
Yes, the recently ordained are from a different generation than their forebears, but the problems to be faced are different too. The previous generation’s task was consolidation of teaching of Vatican II, the present generation’s is the implementation of Vatican II in a way which is consistent and faithful to the living Magisterium. Pray for them, and if you must criticize, do it with more than a hint of charity.
Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit, Michigan, known for its orthodox priestly formation program
There have been several stories in recent years of priests clashing with their bishops, resulting in the phenomenon of “cancelled priests.” What accounts for the rise in this phenomenon?
In St. Luke’s Gospel, Jesus tells his apostles that whosoever listens to them, listens to him and to whom sent him. (Luke 10:16) Do we believe that? If we don’t then our problem is with Jesus. If we do believe that then we must admit that trusting Jesus’ words is essential but not easy. He’s telling us to listen to bishops who unlike himself are not impeccable. It is a sacrifice to be obedient, to listen, but it is what Jesus bids us do if we trust him. Are there flawed bishops and flawed decisions? Of course, it has always been so. What glory we give to God when we trust how he has made his Church!
I think a rise in the number of so-called cancelled priests is directly related to the internet platforms which can outsize one’s estimation of their wisdom and relevance. I personally would be happier if my priests concerned themselves with clicks on confession counters and not clicks on a blog site…. If we want holier bishops and priests, we need only fast and pray. God will never ignore such entreaties. Just don’t think God has appointed you as evaluator of souls unless he has explicitly done so.
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