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BISMARCK, ND — The Most Reverend Daniel Thomas, the bishop of Toledo, can often be seen engaging with his flock of parishioners — if not in person, then on social media, on the web or through the airwaves with his radio segment The Bishop’s Corner, hosted by Annunciation Radio. Thomas shares the gospel through many mediums, answering questions from the faithful and being a witness to His love.

Most recently, he led his parishioners to the 2020 March for Life in Washington, D.C. Thomas joined hundreds of thousands of people of all ages, genders, creeds and cultures, including over 200 University of Mary students and the university’s president, Monsignor James Shea, who marched for those who have no voice.

“Privileged, blessed and inspired to join hundreds of pilgrims from the Diocese of Toledo in D.C. Friday praying, marching and witnessing to defend the dignity and sanctity of every human life, and preeminently the life of unborn children,” Thomas shared on Facebook. “So grateful to be surrounded by countless young people, families, seminarians, priests, parish and school groups, new and old friends, Culture Project missionaries, and folks we met while marching. May we continue to commit ourselves to promoting the most fundamental right we have: the right to life.”

Events such as the March for Life personify the love and conviction for one another that St. Hildegard represented and envisioned. As noted by Franciscan Media, Hildegard “saw humans as ‘living sparks’ of God’s love, coming from God as daylight comes from the sun.” At 10 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 10, in Founders Hall at the Lumen Vitae University Center (LVUC) on campus, Thomas brings more understanding to St. Hildegard in his presentation entitled, “Divine Love Orients Us to the Glorious Resurrection.” The event is free and open to the public.

St. Hildegard of Bingen was declared a Doctor of the Universal Church by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI in October 2012. Pope Benedict pointed to St. Hildegard as someone who was particularly gifted with intellectual acuity and a sensitivity to beauty. Using these gifts, she probed the question of how it is possible for us to know God as a trinity of Persons, and she described how we can respond to God’s voice through the sacred liturgy and by striving to live a virtuous and holy life. Following St. Hildegard’s lead, this lecture focuses on the Christian pilgrimage or journey through the grace of the sacraments and practice of the virtues in communion with other believers toward the glorious resurrection of our bodies in eternity.

“The St. Hildegard Lecture is an annual event meant to bring to campus significant Catholic intellectuals to reflect on the importance of the main themes of the Catholic Studies program: the relationships of faith and reason, the role of beauty and art in culture, and our mission to transform the world,” said Dr. Scott Cleveland, director of Catholic Studies and assistant professor of Philosophy at the University of Mary. “The Lecture is named for St. Hildegard, a 11thcentury Benedictine Abbess and Doctor of the Church, who as a mystic, expert on medicine, poet, and musician represents the integration we seek in our Catholic Studies program.”

It could be said that Thomas is following through on what the Holy Father asked him to do when he was assigned to the Toledo diocese — to spread the good Word among those near and far. The popular shepherd became the eighth bishop of the western diocese of Ohio on August 24, 2014. Pope Francis said in his letter of appointment to the former auxiliary of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, “We hasten to assign to it, without delay, an Ordinary … We confidently turn to you, Venerable Brother, who, endowed as you are with episcopal experience, seemed in Our judgment, to be the right person to guide and bring genuine support to this Flock of the Lord.”

Most Reverend Bishop Daniel Thomas Biography:

On Aug. 26, 2014, the Holy Father, Pope Francis, named the Most Reverend Daniel E. Thomas as the eighth Bishop of the Diocese of Toledo. Bishop Thomas had served as an Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia since his Episcopal Ordination on July 26, 2006.Bishop Thomas was born and raised in Philadelphia, attending Catholic elementary and high schools. He attended Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in Wynnewood, Pa., where he earned both a Bachelor and Master of Arts degree. He also earned a Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.) in 1989 from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.

Ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Philadelphia on May 18, 1985, Bishop Thomas was first assigned as a Parochial Vicar at Saint Joseph Parish in Aston, Pa, and then from 1987 to 1990 was assigned to graduate studies at the Pontifical North American College and the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. In 1990, he was assigned to serve the Holy See as an Official of the Congregation for Bishops, the Dicastery of the Roman Curia primarily charged with assisting the Holy Father in the selection of candidates for the episcopacy. While serving 15 years at the Congregation for Bishops, Bishop Thomas also served as an Adjunct Spiritual Director at the Pontifical North American College Seminary in Rome.

In 1995, he was named Chaplain to His Holiness (Monsignor), and in 2005, was named a Prelate of Honor, both by Pope John Paul II. In October 2005, Bishop Thomas returned to Pennsylvania and was appointed Pastor of Our Lady of the Assumption Parish in Strafford. In 2006, he was ordained Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia, to assist the Archbishop with pastoral responsibilities and administrative duties.

The Installation of Most Reverend Daniel E. Thomas as Bishop of Toledo took place on the first Memorial of Pope Saint John Paul II at Our Lady, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Cathedral on October 22, 2014.

In addition to his duties for the Diocese of Toledo, Bishop Thomas remains a member of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship, Committee on Priorities and Plans and the Administrative Committee representing Region VI, in addition to serving as a Consultor to the USCCB’s Pro-Life Committee. He is a past member of the Committee for Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations.

He is also a member of the Board of Directors for the Catholic Conference of Ohio, the Damascus Catholic Mission Campus, as well as, The Athenaeum of Ohio — Mount St. Mary’s Seminary of the West.