Cardinal designate Tobin asks for prayers

(Vatican Radio) Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin is asking for prayers as he prepares to be installed in the College of Cardinals in November.

The Archbishop of Indianapolis is one of the 17 nominated by Pope Francis to become a new Cardinal during the Consistory on 19 November in St. Peter’s Basilica.

A statement was released immediately after the announcement on Sunday by the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.

The statement also carries a message from the Archbishop himself:

“Early this morning I learned that Pope Francis had appointed me to the College of Cardinals. I will formally be installed in that service in a ceremony in Rome next month. I will continue as the Archbishop of Indianapolis. I have come to love deeply the people of the Catholic communities of central and southern Indiana and count as a precious blessing the numerous friendships I have with civic and religious leaders throughout the state. I ask all people of faith to pray for me. I hope this new responsibility will make me a better servant of all Hoosiers. I also offer my prayers and support to the other Cardinals-elect, especially Archbishop Blase Cupich of Chicago and Archbishop Kevin Farrell, of Dallas, who was recently appointed to a new position in Rome.”

Please find below a biography of Cardinal-designate Joseph W. Tobin:

The Most Reverend Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., was appointed Archbishop of Indianapolis by Pope Benedict XVI on October 18, 2012.

Before his appointment as Archbishop of Indianapolis, Archbishop Tobin served as the Archbishop Secretary of the Vatican Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

Archbishop Tobin, a Redemptorist priest, is a native of Detroit. He was born May 3, 1952 and is the oldest of 13 children. He was educated at Catholic schools. He studied at Holy Redeemer College in Waterford, Wis., where he earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in 1975. He also studied at Mount Saint Alphonsus Seminary in Esopus, N.Y., where he received a master’s degree in religious education in 1977 and a master of divinity degree in 1979.

Archbishop Tobin professed perpetual vows as a member of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (the Redemptorists) on August 21, 1976 and was ordained a priest on June 1, 1978. He was ordained an archbishop on October 9, 2010 in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome following his appointment on August 2, 2010 by Pope Benedict as the Archbishop Secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

As Archbishop Secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Archbishop Tobin worked in the Vatican to oversee the more than 1 million men and women in the world’s religious orders.

Archbishop Tobin has served as a parish priest in the inner city in Detroit and Chicago. As associate pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish in Detroit from 1979 to 1984, Father Tobin was responsible for ministering to the Hispanic community. 
He served as pastor of Holy Redeemer Parish from 1984 to 1990. He then served as pastor of St. Alphonsus Parish in Chicago from July 1990 until October 1991.
Archbishop Tobin served as General Consultor of the Redemptorist congregation from 1991 to 1997 and as its Superior General from 1997 to 2009. He was appointed by the Pope to five Synods of Bishops in 1998, 1999, 2001, 2005 and 2008.

Archbishop Tobin has served as the Co-Chairman of the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation since June 2013. He has also been a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Sub-committee on the Church in Africa since June 2013. He is the chairmen-elect of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations and will become chairman following the USCCB’s fall general assembly in 2016.

On March 29, 2014, Pope Francis appointed Archbishop Tobin a member of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.