as in church
the people of a religion who are not priests, ministers, etc.
a member of the laity The laity has played an important role in the history of the church.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of laity
Catholic clerics and laity have faithfully gathered each night in St. Peter’s Square to recite the rosary for the sake of the pope, being led in their prayer by members of the College of Cardinals.
—
Timothy Nerozzi, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 1 Mar. 2025
Bishops and laity grapple for control of papal agendas, and all grapple with the watershed reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), known as Vatican II.
—Mary Jo McConahay, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2025
What about further empowerment of the laity to take on larger roles within the church — particularly evangelical and managerial — reducing pressure on under-staffed parishes and leading one day to married priests as the Catholic Church allowed for its first 1,000 years?
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 4 May 2024
Discontented laity and non-Catholics turn to the church hierarchy in search of catharsis — or more cynically, perhaps a chance to score political points against enemy politicians.
—Timothy H.j. Nerozzi Fox News, Fox News, 12 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for laity
Timothy Nerozzi, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 1 Mar. 2025
Bishops and laity grapple for control of papal agendas, and all grapple with the watershed reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), known as Vatican II.
—Mary Jo McConahay, New York Times, 15 Feb. 2025
What about further empowerment of the laity to take on larger roles within the church — particularly evangelical and managerial — reducing pressure on under-staffed parishes and leading one day to married priests as the Catholic Church allowed for its first 1,000 years?
—Reader Commentary, Baltimore Sun, 4 May 2024
Discontented laity and non-Catholics turn to the church hierarchy in search of catharsis — or more cynically, perhaps a chance to score political points against enemy politicians.
—Timothy H.j. Nerozzi Fox News, Fox News, 12 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for laity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for laity
Noun
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Listen to this article Just in the first few months of 2025, Robert Boo’s Pride Center discovered four people in Broward County who had HIV through its free testing at churches, festivals, pharmacies and nightclubs.—
Cindy Krischer Goodman,
Sun Sentinel,
6 Apr. 2025
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Community Relations Service employees have quietly intervened with church leaders, community leaders, relatives of victims of violence and city administrators to ward off unrest, lawsuits or boycotts.—
Scott MacFarlane,
CBS News,
6 Apr. 2025
Noun
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On Monday, the women of a parish caught local men, tie them up, demanding a ransom for their release.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
27 Mar. 2025
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Peter & Paul leaders and Zervos with muddying the legal waters to improperly retain control of their parish in defiance of hierarchical authority.—
Andres Viglucci,
Miami Herald,
13 Mar. 2025
Noun
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This was the world’s largest reptile congregation, an ecological phenomenon unlike anything else on Earth.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
26 Mar. 2025
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It's now used as an educational community center, as the congregation built a new church in 1965 during the Civil Rights Movement.—
Jalynn Hilton,
ABC News,
24 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Laity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/laity. Accessed 9 Apr. 2025.
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