Cardinal Joseph Tobin, archbishop of Newark and President of Seton Hall University’s Board of Regents, will visit Seton Hall on March 18 to address the community on “Pope Leo and the Legacy of Pope Francis.” The event is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. in the Event Room at the University Center, with Cardinal Tobin also leading Mass at the main chapel at 5 p.m.
The talk comes as students in Core II are studying Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si, which marks its tenth anniversary this year. The document urges care for the environment and highlights the responsibility to protect those most affected by climate change. According to organizers, these themes are central to both Pope Francis’ teachings and recent affirmations by Pope Leo.
During an address at the Laudato Si Action Platform’s tenth anniversary celebration on October 1, 2025, Pope Leo said: “His analysis, paradigm of integral ecology, insistent call for dialogue, and appeal to address the root causes of problems and to bring the whole human family together to seek sustainable and integral development have aroused widespread interest. Let us give thanks to our Father in Heaven for this gift we have inherited from Pope Francis.” Leo has referred to Francis as “my beloved predecessor.”
The event is sponsored by several university programs including University Core, Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology, Catholic Studies Program, and Catholic Studies Center. Organizers say Cardinal Tobin has previously spoken out about moral and social issues such as immigration—topics closely linked with both Popes’ priorities.
Students are encouraged to attend in order to learn more about how past church leaders have influenced current values at Seton Hall and within its core curriculum.
