St. Thomas community members gathered in Woulfe Alumni Hall Oct. 24 to hear Archbishop of Indianapolis Joseph Tobin, who was recently appointed cardinal, speak about welcoming refugees as an American Catholic tradition.

Tobin said resettling Syrian refugees supports the basic American value as a country to protect those in need. Since the Syrian refugees are victims of terrorism themselves, he believes it is a Catholic and American duty to support those who have gone through the requirements for approval.

“This welcome is an essential part of our Catholic identity, and we will continue this life saving tradition,” Tobin said. “The United States’ refugees resettlement program reflects the core values of the United States and our strong tradition of providing a safe haven for the oppressed.”

The acceptance of Syrian refugees is a popular debate topic in politics. Tobin spoke of how his views clashed with those of Indiana Gov. Mike Pence when Pence suspended the resettlement of Syrian refugees in the state of Indiana in 2015 to protect the citizens of the state from terrorism – a movement that was later ruled unconstitutional and based on insufficient evidence.

Tobin asked to meet with Pence to discuss the matter, specifically regarding a family that would not longer be supported to move to Indiana even after being approved by the United States government. Pence asked Tobin not to support the family’s resettlement in Indiana, but Tobin worked with Catholic Charities to bring the family to their new home regardless.

“And after that search, I was convinced that the decision to bar the family was immoral, capricious and probably illegal,” Tobin said. “Three years ago this family fled the violence of terrorists in their home land of Syria. After two years of extensive security checks and personal interviews, the United States government has approved them to enter our country.”

After the speech, students in the audience were able to ask Tobin their own questions on the issue. One student asked why we shouldn’t provide for the homeless and needy in our own country before offering help to other country’s citizens, to which Tobin confidently said it is possible to provide for both.

First-year student Martin Radosevic said Tobin’s speech had well-laid-out views that reflected the idea that we should be a caring community. He believed the speech was an accurate reflection of what St. Thomas stands for.

“I think that St. Thomas is striving to be a global community,” Radosevic said. “He really stressed service as well, and our school is definitely a service-based school, so I think he does stand for or would agree with what our school stands for.”

Sophomore Emily Trtanj said it is important for people to speak out for reasons apart from the desire to have good political standing, which she believes Tobin is doing well.

“Since religion is so closely tied with political parties, I think it’s really quite amazing that he is able to look outside of those political parties and really state his beliefs and what he believes for the Christian community… aside from needing to establish good political standing,” Trtanj said.

Kassie Vivant can be reached at viva0001@stthomas.edu

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