Doubting Faith Is Healthy Faith, Bishop Tells Catholic Youth Skylstad Answers Questions At Gonzaga Prep Conference

Jessica Connor, 16, is coming of age and doubting her Catholic faith.

She got a chance on Saturday to throw her toughest questions at the bishop.

Connor is among almost 1,000 teenagers taking part in the Catholic Youth Conference at Gonzaga Prep High School this weekend.

She took Bishop William S. Skylstad up on his offer to answer questions on any topic.

“I’ve been Catholic for 16 years and I thought I knew a lot,” she explained. “But what I’m finding is I really have a lot to learn.”

Several dozen teens and just as many parents packed into the French classroom for the workshop, one of dozens offered throughout the day.

After attending churches from other denominations and getting questions from her Protestant friends, Connor wanted to know about Mary, the mother of Jesus.

“Exactly how much emphasis are we supposed to put on Mary?” she tactfully asked.

Skylstad’s answer was long and diplomatic. But in the middle of his discourse, he addressed her concerns.

“You’re right in saying sometimes people go off the deep end in respect to Mary,” he said.

But he also explained that the tradition attached to Mary is part of the Catholic Church, that she occupies a unique role in human history.

Then Skylstad addressed Connor’s underlying question, about doubting her faith.

“The doubting faith is the healthy faith,” he told her. “You need to search that out, be patient with yourself and talk it through with other people.”

After the session Connor said it was a relief to hear those words.

“I have so many questions, sometimes I think I’m in the wrong church,” she said. “I’m glad he said what he did.”

Although Skylstad has presented workshops at the annual conference for several years, this was the first for the question-and-answer forum. It was the suggestion of the youth who organized the event, he said.

Initially, he wasn’t sure there would be enough questions to fill the hour, but in the end the session ran over the allotted time. Afterward, the bishop was detained by several people to answer even more questions.

The topics brought up during the workshop reflect the gamut of thorny subjects the Catholic Church is dealing with in the modern world.

Skylstad fielded questions about divorce, married priests and religious vocations.

Asked about the church’s attitude toward homosexuals, Skylstad said they are brothers and sisters in the Lord. The conflict comes in the church’s teaching that sexual relations are reserved for the married and marriage is reserved for a man and a woman. What that means is that gays, in order to be good Catholics, must lead a chaste life, he said.

“That causes deep anger on the part of the person who is gay, because they feel they can’t express their sexuality,” he said.

One parent said that a new priest assigned to her church kicked the girls out of the altar servers group, saying they could only light candles.

“My daughter said he can light his own candles,” she said.

Skylstad said that for years girls have been serving priests during the Mass and the Vatican officially affirmed the practice two years ago. Still, a minority of people believe only males can be altar servers.

“I certainly don’t feel that way, and maybe I can do something for you,” he said. “I would do it in such a way that it won’t embarrass anyone, but still put the bite on.”

The bishop also talked about his personal life, saying that prayer is crucial to his work and confessing that he doesn’t take enough time off.

He starts his day at 5 a.m. on the Nordic Track, praying the Rosary. But rarely does he take time to himself for personal pursuits.

“And that’s terrible. I am not a very good witness,” he said. “There is something about the Sabbath concept that says there’s a time for rest.”

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