Daniel Edward Thomas
Daniel Edward Thomas | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Toledo | |
 Bishop Thomas in 2013 | |
| Church | Catholic Church |
| Archdiocese | Cincinnati |
| Diocese | Toledo |
| Appointed | August 26, 2014 |
| Installed | October 22, 2014 |
| Predecessor | Leonard Paul Blair |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | May 18, 1985 by John Krol |
| Consecration | July 26, 2006 by Justin Francis Rigali, John Patrick Foley, and Edwin Frederick O'Brien |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 11, 1959 Manayunk, Pennsylvania |
| Previous post(s) | Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia |
| Motto | DOMINUS MEUS ET DEUS MEUS (My Lord and My God) |
| Styles of Daniel Edward Thomas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Reference style | |
| Spoken style | Your Excellency |
| Religious style | Bishop |
Daniel Edward Thomas (born June 11, 1959) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. Since 2014 he has served as the eighth bishop of the Diocese of Toledo in Ohio. Thomas previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia from 2006 to 2014.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Thomas was born in the Manayunk section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Francis and Anna (née Weber) Thomas. He graduated from Roman Catholic High School in in Philadelphia in 1977, and then attended St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania.[1]
Priesthood[]
Thomas was ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia by Cardinal John Krol on May 18, 1985. His first assignment after ordination was as parochial vicar of Saint Joseph's Parish in Aston, Pennsylvania. In 1987, Thomas started graduate studies in dogmatic theology at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, earning his Licentiate of Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in 1989. [1]
Thomas was an official of the Congregation for Bishops in the Roman Curia from 1990 to 2005, while also serving as spiritual director to the seminarians of the North American College. After returning to Philadelphia, Thomas became pastor of Our Lady of the Assumption Parish in Strafford, Pennsylvania on November 19, 2005. He was raised to the rank of Honorary Prelate of His Holiness during that same year.[1]
Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia[]
On June 8, 2006, Thomas was appointed as an Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia and Titular Bishop of Bardstown by Pope Benedict XVI. He received his episcopal consecration on July 26, 2006, from Cardinal Justin Rigali, with Archbishops John Foley and Edwin O'Brien serving as co-consecrators, in the Cathedral-Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul. He adopted as his episcopal motto: Dominus Meus Et Deus Meus ('My Lord and My God') from John 20:28.[1]
Thomas headed the Secretariat of Clergy in the archdiocesan curia, and oversaw St. Charles Borromeo Seminary and the Archdiocese's Vocation Office, Office for Communications, and its newspaper The Catholic Standard and Times.
Bishop of Toledo[]
Pope Francis named Thomas as Bishop of Toledo on August 26, 2014. He was installed on October 22, 2014.[2] He replaced Bishop Leonard Blair, who became the Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Hartford, in December 2013.[2]
Pope Francis named Thomas as Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Cleveland on December 28, 2016.[3] He served this additional assignment until Bishop Nelson Perez was installed on September 5, 2017.[4]
In 2018, Thomas reflected on his handling of a sexual abuse allegation as auxiliary bishop in Philadelphia. The incident had been reported in a 2011 grand jury investigation of sexual abuse in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. In 2007, a man known as "Ben" reported to the archdiocese that he had been sexually abused when he was a child by Joseph J. Gallagher, a priest in archdiocese. Gallagher was already the focus of similar allegations. However, the archdiocese review board found Ben's allegations to be unsubstantiated. Thomas approved the findings and sent them to the archbishop. Less than a year later, Ben committed suicide.[5] Thomas had this comment.
In hindsight, perhaps I would have asked if there was more information we could determine and make a final determination on... Well I think that I feel guilty not just for myself but for any Bishop and priest who has in any way learned and known of any abuse taking place.[5]
On August 20, 2020, Thomas announced that Michael Zacharias, a priest at St. Peter's Parish in Mansfield, Ohio, had been arrested by the FBI on sexual abuse charges. On hearing the news of Zacharias' arrest, Thomas immediately suspended from all priestly functions.[6]
References[]
- ^ a b c d "The Catholic Diocese of Toledo". toledodiocese.org. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- ^ a b "Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo's new bishop named". Toledo Blade. August 26, 2014. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
- ^ "Pope names Bishop Thomas as administrator of Cleveland Diocese". Toledo Blade. December 28, 2016. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
- ^ "Cleveland Bishop Nelson J. Perez installed with diversity, humor: Highlights from the ceremony". Cleveland.com. September 5, 2017. Retrieved September 5, 2017.
- ^ a b "WTOL Exclusive: Bishop Thomas Responds to Philadelphia Grand Jury Report". wtol.com. August 28, 2018. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
- ^ Toledo, Most Reverend Daniel E. Thomas, Bishop of. "Toledo Bishop releases statement after arrest of former St. Peter's priest". Richland Source. Retrieved 2021-12-30.
External links[]
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Toledo Official Site
- USCCB Office of Media Relations
- Our Lady of the Assumption Parish
- Office of the Bishop- Diocese of Toledo in America
Episcopal succession[]
| Bishops |  | |
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| Churches |
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| Higher Education |
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| Priests | ||
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- 1959 births
- Living people
- Clergy from Philadelphia
- Roman Catholic bishops of Toledo
- 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in the United States
- St. Charles Borromeo Seminary alumni