PROVIDENCE (RI)
Providence Journal
BY RICHARD C. DUJARDIN
Journal Religion Writer
PROVIDENCE -- In a joyous and majestic ceremony, Bishop Thomas J. Tobin assumed his seat yesterday as the new spiritual leader for Catholics in Rhode Island, telling his new flock "if our faith is strong, then hope must prevail."
The 57-year-old Tobin, who had been the bishop of Youngstown, Ohio, for nine years and an auxiliary in Pittsburgh before that, received word in March that Pope John Paul II had selected him as the eighth bishop of Providence and successor to the retiring Bishop Robert E. Mulvee. ...
Prior to their arrival into the cathedral, the priests and bishops had to walk past a group of about 12 protesters, most from the Boston area, who assembled in Cathedral Square to remind the church's leaders that as far as they were concerned they had not yet completely addressed the clergy sexual-abuse crisis.
Bishop Tobin referred only obliquely to the scandal in his homily, telling the audience that "if we focus on the failures of members of the church and the problems we face -- failures and problems that are real nonetheless -- it's easy to become tired and discouraged."
Posted by kshaw at June 1, 2005 05:44 AM