The Mass—and the reception that follows it—will also serve as an opportunity for him to say farewell to the Church in central and southern Indiana he has served and grown to love since his installation as its shepherd on Dec. 3, 2012. The date is also the feast day of St. Francis Xavier, principal patron of the archdiocese.
On Nov. 7, Cardinal Tobin shared the news that Pope Francis had reassigned him to become the archbishop of the Archdiocese of Newark, N.J.
That news came less than a month after Pope Francis had named him as one of 17 new cardinals on Oct. 9.
Because Cardinal Tobin’s reassignment to Newark came before he was installed as a cardinal by Pope Francis on Nov. 19 at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, the Archdiocese of Indianapolis has no official or historical claim to him as a cardinal. But the spiritual and emotional bond between Cardinal Tobin and the Archdiocese of Indianapolis has become deep in the four years he has served as the spiritual leader of the Church in central and southern Indiana.
“What four years has done for me is that this wonderful Catholic community spread across 39 counties has gone from ‘the archdiocese’ to ‘my people,’ ” Cardinal Tobin said on Oct. 10, the day after Pope Francis announced him as a new cardinal. “They have a claim on me, and I have a claim on them.”
Cardinal Tobin plans to celebrate that mutual bond and deep connection on Dec. 3. After the Mass, a reception and a receiving line with the cardinal will follow in the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center across the street from the cathedral. The Mass and the reception are both open to the public.
No tickets or reservations are required for people to attend the Mass and/or the reception, which is being sponsored by Franciscan Health.
The Mass will be live-streamed at www.archindy.org/streaming. †
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