Thomas Joseph Tobin

Early life Thomas Tobin was born on April 1, 1948, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He studied at St. Mark Seminary High School and Gannon University, both in Erie, Pennsylvania. He then entered St. Francis University in Loretto, Pennsylvania, where he received his bachelor's degree in 1969. Priesthood Tobin was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop Vincent Leonard for the Diocese of Pittsburgh at the Cathedral of Saint Paul in Pittsburgh on July 21, 1973. After his ordination, the diocese assigned Tobin as an assistant pastor at St. Vitus Parish in New Castle, Pennsylvania, for six years. In 1979, he was appointed assistant pastor at St. Sebastian Parish in Ross Township. Pennsylvania, serving there until 1984. Tobin has been an avid Pittsburgh Steelers fan, and displayed a Steelers banner on his residence during each game day. When the 2018 Pennsylvania Grand Jury Report on Sexual Abuse detailed sexual abuse in the Diocese of Pittsburgh during Tobin's tenure as auxiliary bishop, Tobin said he "became aware of incidents of sexual abuse when they were reported" but did not report them to local authorities or to parishioners. Tobin explained that he was "...not primarily responsible for clergy issues … Issues involving clergy were handled directly by the Diocesan Bishop with the assistance of the clergy office”. He also said that he carried out "other administrative duties such as budgets, property, diocesan staff, working with consultative groups". Retirement and legacy Pope Francis accepted Tobin's resignation as bishop of Providence on May 1, 2023. == Views ==

Abortion In November 2009, US Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy said Tobin told him not to take communion in the diocese because of his support for abortion rights for women. Tobin said he had written Kennedy in confidence in 2007 and never intended a public discussion, adding: "At the same time, I will absolutely respond publicly and strongly whenever he attacks the Catholic Church, misrepresents the teachings of the Church, or issues inaccurate statements about my pastoral ministry."In August 2013, Tobin announced that he had changed his party affiliation from Democratic to Republican, citing the Democratic Party's support for abortion rights as his primary motivation. In December 2013, he criticized Pope Francis on multiple occasions. After Francis reprimanded Catholics who "obsess" over abortion, Tobin, without mentioning Francis by name, called the abortion issue "a very important obsession". "It’s one thing for him to reach out and embrace and kiss little children," Tobin said. "It would also be wonderful if in a spiritual way he would reach out and embrace and kiss unborn children." He added that he was "a little disappointed in Pope Francis." LGBT rights When US President Barack Obama announced his support for same-sex marriage, Tobin said it was "a sad day in American history". He stated that that voting for an abortion rights supporter, feminist, or pro-LGBTQ candidate was morally unacceptable. Tobin also stated: On June 1, 2019, Tobin tweeted: Tobin received both backlash and support for the tweet, and as reported by the Catholic News Agency and others, of the over 88,000 responses and comments, most were critical. After Motif Magazine in June 2019 published a critical open letter to Tobin in response to the tweet, == See also ==