Profile of Rhode Island’s Bishop Tobin
April 06, 2011
Catholic World Report profiles Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence, who publicly called Rep. Patrick Kennedy to “conversion and repentance” in 2009 and who is working to rally opposition to the legalization of same-sex marriage in Rhode Island.
“We need our people to understand that this is a serious issue,” he said. “Our greatest danger as a Catholic community is apathy. If we’re not aware of the situation, don’t care about it or make it a priority, gay marriage will pass in Rhode Island. But if we’re galvanized and make our voices heard, we’ll keep it out of our state.”
“I get both support and criticism,” he added. “From practicing Catholics, as well as members of other religious communities, I’ve been getting a lot of support. They say, ‘Thank you for leading the charge,’ ‘Thank you for speaking out,’ or ‘This is what we expect the bishops to do.’”
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Further information:
- Rediscovering courage and conviction: interview with Bishop Tobin (Catholic World Report)
- Bishop Tobin publicly calls Rep. Kennedy to ‘conversion and repentance’ (CWN, 11/10/09)
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