Tobin tweets weigh-in on sex abuse

PROVIDENCE — As Catholic leaders from around the world gather in Rome for a summit on church sex abuse, Bishop Thomas J. Tobin of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence is watching and weighing in on Twitter.

“Is sexual abuse caused by gay currents in the Church, or rampant clericalism, or episcopal malfeasance, or poor seminary formation, or the sinful condition of fallen mankind? Yes. All of the above,” Tobin wrote Thursday. “Pray for the Summit, and for the spiritual renewal of the Church.”

Tobin — who has called Twitter an “occasion of sin” and quit the social media site in July, before rejoining in January — added in another tweet: “By the way: The spiritual renewal of the Church begins with me.”

Is sexual abuse caused by gay currents in the Church, or rampant clericalism, or episcopal malfeasance, or poor seminary formation, or the sinful condition of fallen mankind? Yes. All of the above. Pray for the Summit, and for the spiritual renewal of the Church.

— Bishop Thomas Tobin (@ThomasJTobin1)February 21, 2019

Dioceses around the globe, including the Diocese of Providence, are continuing to deal with the fallout from decades of sexual abuse of children by priests. In Rhode Island, state Rep. Carol Hagan McEntee is proposing legislation that would increase the statute of limitations to sue over child sexual abuse from seven years to 35. McEntee was inspired by her sister, Ann Hagan Webb, who said she was abused by a West Warwick parish priest.

Tobin announced in December that the diocese would release a list of names of credibly accused priests in the Diocese of Providence some time this year.

Tobin's statement about "rampant clericalism" refers to a cause that Pope Francis often highlights: when clergy members gain too much authority over the people they serve. Episcopal malfeasance is often invoked to refer to wrongdoing by bishops.

The bishop's reference to “gay currents” strikes at one of the more divisive issues at the four-day summit in Rome. As the Washington Post reports: “Though abuse and sexuality have been found to have no correlation, according to widely accepted research, they have become intertwined on the ideological battlefield of the church.”

The Rev. James Martin, a Jesuit priest, wrote in an August 2018 article in America Magazine: “Other malign stereotypes are also being peddled, for example, the idea that homosexuality inevitably leads to abuse. This is contradicted by almost every study, including the John Jay Report, an exhaustive study of sex abuse in the Catholic Church between 1950 and 2010. Most abuse happens in families.”

Other church leaders, however, such as Cardinal Raymond Burke and Cardinal Walter Brandmüller, have pointed to what they consider a "plague of the homosexual agenda," according to the National Catholic Register.