Pope resigns: Peter Turkson reveals vision for the Church and 'alternative lifestyles'

The Telegraph ^ | 2-12-2013 | Malcolm Moore

[plain talk]

Cardinal Peter Turkson, a 64-year-old Ghanaian prelate, is the bookmaker's early favourite to succeed Pope Benedict XVI. He told The Daily Telegraph Tuesday that his biggest challenge, should he be elected, would be to maintain an orthodox Catholic doctrine while "at the same time knowing how to apply it so that you do not become irrelevant in a world that has continuous changes".

Cardinal Turkson, who holds one of the most important jobs in the Roman Curia and has been repeatedly promoted by Pope Benedict, was quick to take a conservative line on gay marriage and other "alternative lifestyles".

"We need to find ways of dealing with the challenges coming up from society and culture," he said, adding that the Church needed to "evangelise", or convert, those who had embraced "alternative lifestyles, trends or gender issues". He added: "We cannot fail in our task of providing guidance."

[plain talk]

He also said ".

"It is going to be a life-changing experience and I think that is what it has been for Benedict and those who have gone before us. The challenge will also be with the individual to want to make his mark, not trying to fit into anybody's shoes but finding his own shoes to wear."

sounds very presumptous. In fact I can't ever recall a Cardinal speaking so publicly about the possibility of them becoming Pope ... particularly in this manner.

[Ingtar]

Do they really want to choose a man named Peter from Romana? It would be like begging Malachy to be correct.

[DManA]

There is a plan. And it will play out.

The strangest thing about it is why doesn’t everyone see it?

[G Larry]

Self promotion? Self nomination?

Not a good sign.

Not a welcome characteristic.

[nickcarraway]

If the next pope is against gay marriage, or disagrees with the U.N. in any way, he will be hounded until he resigns. Because after all, now we know, popes can resign for anything.

[Lawgvr1955]

Perhaps we are living in the End Times.

[SMCC1]

I don’t know but it’s important to keep in mind he’s African so even if he’s speaking in english, it may not exactly ‘translate.’ Still may be presumptuous though.

[lightman]

Self promotion is usually self-defeating.

[O6ret]

Such a humble man.....

[Rockingham]

There is a saying that he who goes into a conclave a Pope comes out a Cardinal.

[piytar]

Last pope = antipope?

[Old Sarge]

Cardinal Peter of the Roman Curia...

Here’s hoping the old adage holds true: “He who walks into the conclave a Pope, walks out as a Cardinal”...

[Old Sarge]

Argh, ya beat me!

[MuttTheHoople]

Da Popizzle In Da Hizzle!!!

[steve86]

Oh gawd, I didn’t notice Cardinal Turkson was a Pete until now. Need to read up on the guy.

[battousai]

I liked this part, so OK with me if the Holy Spirit choses this man as our next Pope...

Cardinal Turkson has caused controversy in the past both by screening a video claiming that Europe faced being overrun by Muslims and by insisting that condoms were not the solution to preventing HIV.

It never ceases to amaze me how the hand wringing left insist that the Church should endorse condoms to stop AIDS...but don't seem to get the logical disconnect that the people contracting AIDS are already living lives discordant with Christian and Catholic teaching...i.e. having promiscuous sexual relations with multiple partners...so why would they pay heed to what the Church had to say about condoms?...no they don't wear condoms..because well they just don't like it, nothing to do with the Church teaching on the subject.

[steve86]

Well, a quick reading doesn't turn up any "bad pope" tendencies whatsoever.

And he appears to speak the languages of many of the world's Catholics, in addition to a few others...

An accomplished polyglot, Turkson is able to speak English, Fante, French, Italian, German, and Hebrew, in addition to understanding Latin and Greek.

No Arabic though (whew!)

[diverteach]

In October 2011 Cardinal Turkson called for the establishment of a “global public authority” and a “central world bank” to rule over financial institutions that have become outdated and often ineffective in dealing fairly with crises. The document, Towards Reforming the International Financial and Monetary Systems in the Context of a Global Public Authority was very specific, calling for taxation measures on financial transactions. It notes that “The economic and financial crisis which the world is going through calls everyone, individuals and peoples, to examine in depth the principles and the cultural and moral values at the basis of social coexistence,” it said. The document condemned what it called “the idolatry of the market” as well as a “neo-liberal thinking” that it said looked exclusively at technical solutions to economic problems. “In fact, the crisis has revealed behaviours like selfishness, collective greed and hoarding of goods on a great scale,” it said, adding that world economics needed an “ethic of solidarity” among rich and poor nations.

This dies not bode well. The rest of his biography has other telling clues as well.

[peter the great]

Yes they will

[D-fendr]

Where’s the “from Romana” come from? I don’t get it; he born in Wassa Nsuta in Western Ghana.