In front of hundreds of clergy, city leaders and Catholic faithful, Jeffrey Grob opened a new era in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee on Tuesday with a highly choreographed ceremony, ascendant choral music and mementoes dating back as far as John the Evangelist.
At his installation as archbishop, Grob, 63, mixed the humble perspective of a one-time farm boy with a vision to expand the church's outreach to the marginalized, and to engage in a dialogue with the larger community.
Given his childhood on a Dane County dairy farm — where he is said to have played "Mass" on the front porch with Necco wafers as the communion hosts — it was only fitting that Grob introduce himself to southeast Wisconsin's , Catholics in agricultural terms.
In the care farmers have for the earth, Grob shared the lesson of care for God's creation and the Catholic belief in the dignity of all people. More: Empty pews. Underused buildings. Strained priests. What issues face new archbishop? He also hopes to emulate the spirit of the Vatican's "Synod on Synodality," a just-completed three-year process of consulting Catholics from around the globe, by listening and meeting people "where they are.
That world has changed. Catholics offered prayers in nine languages, from Burmese and Hmong to Polish and Swahili, and the first two readings were proclaimed in Spanish and Tagalog. Grob accepted gifts from representatives of more than a dozen ethnic groups, most in colorful traditional dress. The new archbishop takes over the county archdiocese from Jerome Listecki, who led local Catholics through the clergy sex abuse bankruptcy and into relative stability over the last 14 years.
