Who Is Bishop Thomas Tobin? New Details on the Catholic Priest Who Urged People to Not Take Part in Pride Activities

Sigh. This is all just so tiresome — all the people rallying againt Pride month and the LGBTQIA community. Love is love. Live and let live. What's that saying mostly attributed to Ghandi? "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." Well here we have one more example of a Catholic priest — a bishop in this case — who is counseling his Rhode Island flock that they should not participate in or support Pride events. On June 1st, Bishop Thomas Tobin tweeted: "A reminder that Catholics should not support or attend LGBTQ 'Pride Month' events held in June. They promote a culture and encourage activities that are contrary to Catholic faith and morals. They are especially harmful for children." There are things I could say about the Catholic church and children, particularly young boys, but that's not what this article is about. This article is about the fossil who tweeted the anti-Pride sentiment. Who is Bishop Thomas Tobin?

1. Rhode Island Pride's reaction

As you can imagine, the tweet brought about backlash from LGBT groups, including Rhode Island Pride. The group responded to Bishop Tobin's tweet, writing: "This Bishop doesn't represent a majority of RI Catholics who overwhelmingly supported marriage equality 6 years ago. Love is love. You sir are filled with hate." Rhode Island Pride's Joe Lazzerini expanded on this tweet on June 1st, saying: “Rhode Island Pride respectfully calls on Bishop Tobin to do some self-reflection as the majority of Catholic Rhode Islanders in this state reject the idea that to be Catholic is to be complicit to intolerance, bigotry, and fear. Many Catholics are LGBTQIA+ and allies to our community, who participate in the love and diversity that is Rhode Island Pride. All are welcome to enjoy a safe, fun, and prideful celebration on Saturday, June 15th.” Even the mayor of Providence Jorge Elorza chimed in, saying: "A reminder that Providence is a place where all people are welcome to celebrate Pride this month. We stand with and support our LGBTQIA+ community here this June and every day in our capital city.” A protest was organzied in response to Tobin's tweet.

RELATED: 5 Things Straight People At Pride Need To Know About Being A Good Ally

2. He's been Bishop of Providence since 2005

His biography on the Diocese of Providence states that Bishop Thomas J. Tobin was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1948. He graduated from St. Francis University in 1969 and went on to pursue graduate studies at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute of San Anselmo in Rome He was ordained in 1973 and worked as an assistant pastor in Pittsburgh. Pope John Paul II appointed him Auxilliary Bishop of Pittsburgh in 1992. In 1996, Tobin was named Bishop of Youngstown, Ohio. In 2005, he was named Bishop of Providence, Rhode Island.