Father Vladimir Tobin was recently forced out of his position at his Halifax, Nova Scotia Christian Orthodox church. Father Tobin was the head priest at the church he served and forced to retire just about a year earlier than his planned retirement.
CBN News reported that Father “Tobin’s grandmother was Jewish,” but that he himself had been baptized into orthodox Christianity. Born in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1942 had first become an Anglican priest early on, due to the lack of opportunity in the orthodox church.
Fr Tobin had earned his B.A. in Classics and M.A. in Patristic Theology. Sometime after leaving Pine Hill Divinity Hall, where he had earned a Master of Divinity, he would be found living in Israel, where he would later receive a PhD in Egyptology.*
At the age off 77 and quite accomplished, he was forced to leave his role as head priest because some considered his preaching and teaching, too Jewish. His crime, as it was perceived, was too often praying for Israel.**
CBN News noted this quote from Fr Tobin; “I was happy in Orthodoxy but felt there was some anti-Jewishness there. I wrote a piece for publication but was told by my superiors that ‘it was too Jewish.’ My own theology recognized a faith that started with Abraham and grew through the centuries through Christ.”
As my readers know, I am not Jewish. I am not orthodox Christian and I am not, in any way, an expert on Judaism. I have never met Fr Tobin. I wish I had. We seem to have quite a bit in common; excluding his illustrious formal education.
Some of you may recall that I too am an advocate of Early Christianity via Judaism. I have said it numerous times. I shall say it here, again; Jesus was Jewish. There’s no way of getting around this fact and I don’t believe that Christianity can be studied unless it is studied through the lens of Judaism.
I am very disheartened to learn of his forced retirement, but very proud of him for not backing down or away from his stance. I support Israel and I am a proud supporter of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews; and gladdened to see the president of the IFCJ, Yael Eckstein, express her supportive thoughts.
It is truly a sad time, even in our so-called post-Christian era, that praying for people, whether at home or abroad, is attacked in such a manner.
I sincerely hope that Fr Tobin will continue in whatever venue I’m sure he will be given. I sincerely wish I had had some opportunity in which our paths would have crossed, and I wish him well in all his future labors.
©2019 Clayton Moore All Rights reserved!
*Source: https://www.halifaxorthodox.org/parish.html#rector
**CBN News
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