MILWAUKEE (WI)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

By Annysa Johnson of the Journal Sentinel Sept. 14, 2014

Catholic laity — the people in the pews — will play a more prominent role in the life of the church in southeastern Wisconsin in the coming years, according to a declaration issued Sunday by Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki.

And local bishops will lend their voices to the social justice issues that disproportionately affect minorities in the 10-county archdiocese, such as poverty, immigration and gun violence, the declaration says.

The document, issued during Mass at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, outlines Listecki’s long-range vision for the church, which was mapped out in June during a two-day synod that pulled together hundreds of local Catholics from across the archdiocese. …

Listecki’s blueprint comes at a pivotal time for the church in southeastern Wisconsin. The archdiocese is attempting to emerge from a grueling, nearly…