After intemperate post, Catholic bishop in Rhode Island is through with Twitter

Twitter is one of the most powerful social media platforms, but Thomas Tobin, the Catholic bishop of Providence, Rhode Island, is casting it off.

As The Washington Post reported, “He shared his thoughts on a vast array of subjects, including abortion, the New England Patriots, Pride Month and his pet dog.”

But he’s now left Twitter, saying in a “final tweet” it “has become a major distraction,” an “obstacle to my spiritual life” and “an occasion of sin for me and others.”

Tobin didn’t go into details, but the decision followed another tweet from him that some regarded as “defensive and insensitive to victims of sexual abuse by Catholic clerics.”

The pope and other bishops — including Chicago’s Cardinal Blase Cupich — retain Twitter accounts. But as the Post pointed out, top churchmen generally “rely on a staff to manage their accounts,” while Tobin “stood out for not being filtered.”

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