Thomas Roberts (bishop), Date of Birth, Place of Birth, Date of Death

Thomas Roberts (bishop)

Catholic archbishop

Date of Birth: 07-Mar-1893

Place of Birth: Le Havre, Normandy, France

Date of Death: 28-Feb-1976

Profession: Catholic priest

Zodiac Sign: Pisces

Thomas d'Esterre Roberts (7 March 1893 – 28 February 1976) was an English Jesuit priest.
He was rector of St Francis Xavier’s, Liverpool, from 1935 to 1937.
He was Archbishop of Bombay, India, from 1937 to 1950 but in practice did not exercise this role after 1946 when he absented himself from the post and left his Indian auxiliary bishop effectively in charge.
In 1950 he was appointed titular Archbishop of Sugdaea, modern Sudak. After leaving Bombay, not having a regular diocesan job, he dedicated himself to lecturing, writing, and the promotion of debate on controversial issues.
He held that to be effective, authority had to be accepted, not imposed.
This required that it be subject to open criticism, scrutiny and review, procedures which he felt were somewhat lacking in the governance of the Church.
His refusal to sweep any question under the carpet at times unnerved some church authorities and gained him a reputation in some Catholic circles as a "rogue bishop" or a "maverick".
Although others applauded his challenging insights, the controversy obscured the significance of his work in Bombay.