SANCTIFYING OFFICE

Speaking of the spiritual state of the Catholic Church in Africa, Turkson explained that “most of us came to the Church after the Second Vatican Council, so we do not look back at a well-established Church that now has to adopt and implement the Second Vatican Council. Instead, we feel part of the Council.” The cardinal clearly embraces the changes brought about by Vatican II but has remained silent as to whether the changes it caused in the liturgy have been misdirected in some cases. He has, however, noted the differences between African and European styles of worship:

For African priests serving in parishes in the United States, it is difficult to understand the stringent impositions on worship. Sermons can’t be longer than five minutes, or the whole Mass has to be done in 25 minutes. They will do what they are asked to do, but deep down they think, how can this be?¹In a 2005 interview, when asked about inculturation of the liturgy in Africa, the cardinal stated that “the use of the tom-tom, our concepts, our way of representation, our chants, our dances are our gifts with which we want to adore the Lord. The Holy See doesn’t impose vetoes on us but does invite us to take care that these modes of inculturation don’t get perceived as a pagan cult or a simple spectacle. It is the task of us African bishops to watch that it doesn’t happen.”

Care for Creation

For the cardinal, participating in the liturgy helps us to reflect on who we are as human beings and our mission to the world as Christians. As part of this, Turkson connects the liturgy to care for creation, which is integrally linked to the flourishing of the human person and fundamental human relationships. In a recent catechesis on the Eucharist and care for creation, the cardinal said:

Having a wide-angle lens on as much of life as possible is true to Catholic principle of sacramentality. Part of the challenge which celebrating sacramental liturgy can offer is to help us reflect back on the world in which we live and to ponder our care for it as well as our concern for those who dwell on it. This means taking seriously our obligation of being in communion with and caring for our common home.²Cardinal Peter K. A. Turkson, “The Eucharist and the Care for Creation,” Pontificium Consilium De Iustitia Et Pace, 27 January 2016

Because of the centrality of the sacraments to Catholic life, Cardinal Turkson has called for a more thorough catechesis on the sacraments. During the Second Special Assembly for Africa of the Synod of Bishops in 2009 (the “Second African Synod”), the cardinal warned that “the Eucharist has not yet penetrated the daily life and activity of many of the faithful.” Turkson has asked for “greater attention and vigilance on the part of bishops and priest to guarantee prayerful liturgical celebrations,” which must be based on “solid liturgical theology.”³Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson, foreword to Understanding the Mass: Historical, Biblical, Theological, and Liturgical Perspectives, by Bishop Joseph Osei-Bonsu (New York: Paulist Press, 2017).

Cardinal Turkson’s understanding of the liturgy as relational also extends to his understanding of those who serve in the liturgy: deacons. Turkson described the deacon’s ministry as “humble service at the altar and in all of life as a consequence of what occurs at the altar table.”⁴Cardinal Peter K. A. Turkson, “The Eucharist and the Care for Creation,” Pontificium Consilium De Iustitia Et Pace, 27 January 2016

Women in the Church

The cardinal has clearly stated that limiting priestly ordination to men does not discriminate against women. When asked directly in an interview with CNN in 2013 about the role of women in the Church and the ordination of women priests, the cardinal affirmed the reservation of priestly ordination to men. He stated that limiting ordination to the priesthood to men “is not a discrimination against one’s sex or gender” nor a “denial of rights”; rather, “it is how the Church understood this order of ministry to be.”

Although he understands that priestly ordination is reserved to men, Turkson affirms the important role that women play in the Church. In an interview in 2010, Cardinal Turkson stated that “apart from the question of ordination,” he did not “see why we should exclude women from positions of responsibility in the Church.” During his tenure as president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, the council had a female undersecretary. In addition, Turkson asserted that Ghana has “many women catechists, which is a very important position,” and as “many communities do not have a priest to lead them in worship every Sunday it is this woman catechist who leads the worship.” Although the cardinal has not commented on the role of Our Lady as a model for women in family life, he has predicted that more women will “take up leadership positions in the church and the Roman Curia.”

Priestly Celibacy

In terms of viri probati (ordination of married men of proven virtue), the cardinal has framed removing the requirements of clerical celibacy as one of many solutions to the shortage of priestly vocations. At the end of the 2019 Amazon synod, he said the issue would “likely be the subject of further study” for the universal Church. He does not, however, believe that the celibate priesthood presents a particular problem for the Church in Africa.

GOVERNING OFFICE

The Catholic Church in Cape Coast grew from 13 percent of the population in the mid-1990s to over 17 percent of the population in 2006 during the leadership of Cardinal Turkson. The high number of priestly vocations in his diocese enabled the cardinal not only to staff his own ministries, but to send his priests to other parts of the world.

Seminary Formation

During the Second African Synod, Turkson spoke of the importance of forming seminarians in his region. For the cardinal, “the formation of seminarians ought to be taken care of,” and “a good blending of philosophy and theology will ensure an adequate response to the questions posed by the world.” Taking the obligation to form seminarians seriously, Turkson believes that “it is necessary to create a ratio nationalis institutionis sacerdotalis, to help favor discernment and spiritual and affective formation, adapted to circumstances and persons.” The results of this “rigorous discernment and a spiritual, affective formation adapted to situations” will help priests to be “persons firmly rooted in their cultures and faithful to the teaching of the Church.”

Finding “competent and well-trained formators” for seminarians has been a priority. During his tenure as the archbishop of Cape Coast, the cardinal collaborated with Renewal Ministries, a U.S. Catholic charismatic movement, to form priests and seminarians in his archdiocese.⁵Renewal Ministries, April 2007 Part of this formation also included the provision of scholarships by Renewal Ministries for priests from Ghana who were interested in attending evangelization and formation programs at the Sacred Heart Seminary in Detroit.⁶Renewal Ministries, April 2007

Divorce and Remarriage

In addition to addressing the need for good formation of African priests, Turkson has tackled more difficult issues facing the Church in Africa. In an interview with the Boston Globe in 2014, the cardinal was ambiguous on the issue of relaxing the ban on divorced-and-civilly-“remarried” couples from receiving Communion. In responding to a question about whether relaxing the ban would negatively affect the Church’s prohibition on polygamy, the cardinal said, “I don’t think giving consideration to the divorced and remarried would create any problem for the ministry of marriage in Africa.”

Although the cardinal favors interreligious dialogue, he affirms nonetheless the unicity of salvation through Jesus Christ and that the fullness of truth resides in the Catholic Church. During the 2004 Eucharistic Congress, Turkson stated that “God desires everyone to come to the knowledge of the truth, namely, ‘there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus . . . who gave himself as ransom for all’ (1 Tim. 2:5).” For Cardinal Turkson, the Church is the “household of God and a pillar of truth . . . [and] sound teaching nourishes the Church (1 Tim. 4:6).” As part of this understanding, the cardinal has endorsed a book that criticizes a form of practical universalism about salvation for non-Catholics and non-Christians. In addition, during a Bible Summit in 2012, Turkson praised Dei Verbum, saying that it “led to a surging vitality in the life of the Church.” Turkson remarked that Pope Benedict XVI affirmed Dei Verbum and stated that “nothing that the Church does is not rooted in Scripture.”⁷These comments show Turkson’s support for Dei Verbum, the historicity of the Gospels, and the inerrancy of Scripture.

Merging of Dicasteries

Turkson oversaw the merging of the Pontifical Councils for Justice and Peace, for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, and for Health Care Workers into the “super dicastery” for the Promotion of Integral Human Development, completed in 2017. However, as with each of these reforms of the Roman Curia, efficiency has increased in some areas and declined in others. Throughout his time at the Vatican, Turkson has been closely assisted by Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J., who served as his principal aide before Czerny’s appointment to head the migrant section of the new dicastery and his subsequent elevation to the College of Cardinals.

Coronavirus

In April 2020, Pope Francis asked Cardinal Turkson, as head of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, to create and coordinate a new commission of five working groups to express “the Church’s concern and love for the entire human family in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic.” The so-called task force primarily has a socioeconomic and scientific focus to deal with the fallout from the virus outbreak. Similarly, in interviews, Turkson focused on the “concrete” help the dicastery was to offer in terms of support, consisting of assisting local churches to help save lives, to help the poorest, and to deal with the economic crisis and social consequences to follow. Observers pointed out that he made no mention of the sacraments or their deprivation after several weeks of public Mass cancellations.

World Economic Forum

Cardinal Turkson has been actively involved in the World Economic Forum (WEF) meetings in Davos, representing the Vatican’s interests and perspectives on global economic issues. His participation has focused on promoting a vision of economic development that aligns with the principles of social justice and the common good.

He has held back from being overtly critical of the organization which has been criticized for promoting the ideas and values of a wealthy, globalist elite.

Some Catholic commentators have expressed concerns about the Vatican’s enthusiastic engagement with the forum, saying that the WEF’s agenda do not fully align with traditional Catholic social teachings.

For his part, Turkson has used his platform at the WEF to advocate changes in how businesses operate within the global economic system. His focus has been on urging companies to align their objectives with societal values that benefit the common good, rather than solely maximizing profits.

Cardinal Turkson has also endorsed and promoted at the WEF the controversial concept of “stakeholder capitalism,” which suggests that businesses should consider the interests of all stakeholders, including employees and communities, rather than just shareholders. However, it is not clear who or what should be the arbiter of those interests — interests which could, and most likely would, be opposed to Church teaching in many cases.

Council for Inclusive Capitalism

The Ghanaian cardinal has also been controversially involved in the Council for Inclusive Capitalism, another initiative seen by many to be the creation of a wealthy, globalist elite keen on preserving power and influence.

Founded by Lynn Forester de Rothschild, the council aims at reforming capitalism to become a more inclusive and sustainable economic system. As the head of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Turkson played a significant role in providing moral guidance to the council. The council is led by a group of global leaders, known as “Guardians for Inclusive Capitalism.”

The organization has been criticised on the right and the left, with the former censuring the movement for supporting policies which allegedly induced cronyism and exacerbated the ills of government intervention into the economy, and the latter referring seeing it as a “Trojan Horse” organized by economic elites to maintain the status quo while paying lip service to more progressive ideals.

TEACHING OFFICE

In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Turkson president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace (hereafter the “council”) and Francis appointed him head of the new Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development (hereafter the “dicastery”) in 2017. The dicastery situates human development firmly within a personalist framework, which focuses on the dignity of the human person as the center and root of economic, social, and cultural development.

Rooting Out Church Corruption

In addition to concerns regarding technology and ecology, Turkson has devoted significant efforts to weeding out corruption in the ecclesial and secular spheres. In 2011, echoing the contents of Benedict XVI’s 2009 social encyclical Caritas in Veritate, he called for a “global public authority” and a “central world bank” to be established with the task of ruling local financial institutions; and in 2017 he published a book titled Corrosione. Combattere la corruzione nella Chiesa e nella società (Rome: Rizzoli), which included a laudatory preface by Pope Francis. The book has also been translated into Spanish.

Cardinal Turkson has spoken widely on the topic of human dignity and its core meaning. His view of human rights “stem[s] from the deepest foundation stone” of human dignity, the imago Dei. In an address to the United Nations on human rights, the cardinal articulated certain natural human rights that flow from authentic human dignity, including the right to health care and religious liberty. He distinguished from these natural rights those rights that have proliferated through political discourse and are unconnected to the true dignity of the human person, including such faux rights as those to same-sex “marriage” and homosexual behavior. Advocating for integral human development has led Turkson to address other human-rights issues in the public square. In 2018, Cardinal Turkson spoke about the problem of antibiotic overuse, the problem of prostitution and human trafficking, and the current human-rights abuses in the fishing industry.

Human Rights

Turkson has spoken openly about many of the social issues affecting the African continent, including the imposition of certain Westernized understandings of health care onto the African people. In 2017, Cardinal Turkson described health care as a “human right” for every human person, not just the privileged population. He stated that the practice of abortion was part of an antilife mentality in health care rather than women’s legitimate health care.

Turkson has distinguished what he calls “healthy realism” from relativism in the human-rights discourse, which, he says, “removes these rights from their proper context because it implies that rights are not based on the natural law inscribed on our hearts and thus not present in all cultures and civilizations.” The cardinal’s approach to human rights is informed by the truths of the Catholic Faith. For the cardinal, “respect for orthodoxy and the teaching of the true faith seems to have been very crucial in the maintenance of unity among the communities (Acts 2:42).”

Reproductive-Rights Opposition

Cardinal Turkson’s pro-life lens colors his approach to defining human rights. He has condemned using the term “reproductive rights” to encompass abortion rights. As an African, Cardinal Turkson has spoken against the imposition of Western norms about abortion and contraception on the developing world. “It’s not for people sitting here (in the West) to decide [that] the issues for people in the developing world are abortion and contraception. These are not health issues.” Cardinal Turkson rejects the proliferation of new human rights that are unconnected to the flourishing of the human person and human communities, explaining that “the Church has a serious concern when the ideology of a particular group of individuals can somehow create a new human right.” Turkson clearly indicated a view that abortion is never morally permissible when he condemned “the attempt on the part of some to legitimize the killing of an unborn child through the promotion of so called ‘reproductive rights,’ ‘reproductive services,’ and other loaded terms which mask the tragedy of abortion.”

Life Issues

In 2017, Cardinal Turkson stated that euthanasia is part of an antilife mentality in health care. To those who would offer assistance to suicide, Turkson called for people to respect the fullness and dignity of every life. The cardinal linked the Church’s teaching on the prohibition on euthanasia to the relationality of the human person. “No individual is an island,” the cardinal stated. “Relationship is fundamental to being human. End-of-life provisions must not neglect this point.”

Turkson has made a clear distinction between pain management and intentional killing. During the 2016 John M. Kelly Lecture at the University of St. Michael’s College, Toronto, he stated that “compassion is misplaced when it intentionally hastens death.” Rather, euthanasia is “the ultimate form of exclusion, marginalization and throwing away.” Turkson taught clearly that “the Church has long taught that physicians may manage the pain and suffering of the dying so that they can live their final period as richly as possible, in relationship with others and with God, even if that period becomes shorter as a side-effect of the pain management measures.” The cardinal has also defended conscientious objection for Catholic physicians and hospitals.

In addition, the cardinal has spoken frequently about the problems of HIV and poverty in Africa. When asked what specific challenges the Catholic health-care ministry was facing in 2017, the cardinal talked generally about the cultural “antilife” mentality that runs contrary to the gospel of life. He described this mentality as “touch[ing] on all stages of human life, from its initial stages to its natural end: procreation, living and death,” which manifests itself as “artificial means of fertility control, contraceptives and abortion, genetic manipulation, euthanasia, [and] assisted suicide.” Cardinal Turkson urged the Church to counter the growing antilife mentality and encouraged a commitment to the “absolute respect for human life and its sacredness.”

Turkson has stressed the urgency of nations meeting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, which he praised wholeheartedly. To date, he has neither mentioned nor warned against goal number three, which sets targets for promoting “sexual and reproductive health” (code for abortion and contraception) for the world’s poorest by 2030.

Contraception and HIV and AIDS

Turkson’s views on contraception are unclear, and on the use of condoms to prevent the transmission of AIDS, they are permissive. In an interview with the BBC in 2015 to discuss climate change, he made a statement that suggested a lower population could be a climate-change solution, which sparked controversy. His full response was as follows:

This has been talked about, and the Holy Father on his trip back from the Philippines also invited people to some form of birth control, because the church has never been against birth control and people spacing out births and all of that. So yes, it can offer a solution. The amount of population that is critical for the realization of this is still something we need to discover, yet the Holy Father has also called for a certain amount of control of birth.

Following the BBC interview, Turkson clarified that in using the term “control of birth,” he was referring to the spacing of children. Cardinal Turkson explained that “you don’t deal with one good with another evil: The Church wants people to be fed, so let’s do what the Church feels is not right? That is a kind of sophistry that the church would not go for.”

Cardinal Turkson has signaled openness to the separate argument that condoms might be appropriate for couples where one partner is HIV-positive to prevent the disease from spreading. In a Vatican news conference in 2009 the cardinal answered a question on the problem of HIV and AIDS, saying, “In Africa there are so very, very many various scenarios involving the HIV/AIDS question. There is a situation in Southern Africa which is tragic, which is very pressing and that’s where most of the references about the [treatment] of HIV refer.” He noted the discovery now antiretrovirus drugs, adding: “It is either the antiretrovirus or it is the use of condom to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS, unless we go with the abstinence, you know, and fidelity to partners and things like that.

Examining a survey of Catholic hospitals in Ghana, Turkson said that “when even people propose” the “use of condoms, it becomes only effective in families where they resolve also to be faithful. But still our primary concern and our priority are such that what we will talk first about will probably be this: the abstinence and loyalty and fidelity and you refrain from sex when it is not the case.”

Cardinal Turkson articulated his own view on the matter, which emphasized the role of pastoral accompaniment and case-by-case decision-making:

If anybody came to me ever with HIV/AIDS and wanted my view, I know that in all situations of pastoral counselling the pastor never decides what a candidate must do. It’s the same in psychological counselling situations: you just expose the issues, discuss the issues with the candidate and allow the person to decide, take his own decision. And when that is the case, I would not undervalue the possibility that somebody who has AIDS, recognizing his own Christian commitment, would simply just decide to refrain from sex. Some would, in such a situation, have advised the use of a condom by the partner who has HIV/AIDS so it doesn’t spread.

His final view on the matter was to prioritize funding of antiretroviral drugs instead of investing in the production of condoms because “the use of condoms is sometimes risky: risky in the sense that will we have cases of condoms that have burst during sex.” However, the cardinal’s main argument seems to be that condoms give Africans “a false sense of security,” because of improper use. Cardinal Turkson stated that “people think that using condoms will prevent the spreading of AIDS but it is actually helping the disease spread.” It is not clear if Turkson was limiting this discussion to married couples with discordant AIDS or HIV status who used condoms to combat disease or if he was speaking of condom use more generally. However, he subsequently stated that “the position of the church on condoms is pretty clear.”

Homosexuality

Turkson appears to maintain that homosexual behavior is immoral and calls same-sex-attracted persons to chastity. He has described homosexuality as an “alternative lifestyle” and once criticized the previous Secretary-General of the United Nations for conflating mere desires with human rights. The cardinal stated:

We [the Church] push for the rights of prisoners, the rights of others; and the last thing we want to do is infringe upon the rights of anyone. But when you’re talking about what’s called “an alternative lifestyle,” are those human rights? He [Ban Ki-moon] needs to recognize there’s a subtle distinction between morality and human rights, and that’s what needs to be clarified.

Cardinal Turkson has commented on the connection between gender fluidity and homosexuality in the human-rights context and rejected the inclusion of both as genuine human-rights issues:

Another example is the use of the term “gender” to suggest that sex is not biologically grounded as male and female but is simply a social construct or produced by what individuals think or feel they are. Moreover, attempts to recognize those engaging in homosexual behavior as a specific group to be accorded human rights go beyond the protection to be guaranteed to all people under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Respect and compassion for homosexual persons also mark Turkson’s approach, and he has made it clear that all persons “must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity” and that “every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided.” This posture of respect and compassion does not, however, take away from the cardinal’s view that “the Church regrets the discordance between homosexual behavior as such and what we understand as the norm for God-given human nature.” Instead, Turkson asks that we emulate compassion and respect for all people and “see our Lord’s reaction when the townspeople wished to stone a woman to death for adultery: He managed to preserve her life and bodily security (John 8:1-11).”

Indeed, in his role as relator for the Second African Synod, Turkson spoke about the many attacks on the traditional family in Africa. The cardinal described the “ferocious onslaught on the family and the related fundamental institution of marriage from outside Africa” which comes from “ideological (gender ideology, a new global sexual ethic, genetic engineering) and clinical (contraception: Planned Parenthood and Reproductive Health Education, sterilization), and emerging ‘alternative’ life styles (same-sex marriages, sexual unions).” During the Second African Synod, Turkson, along with the synod fathers, “vigorously denounced the ideology and international programs which are imposed on African countries under false pretexts or as conditions for development assistance.”

During his tenure as president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Turkson described the criminal sanctions imposed on homosexuals in Africa as an “exaggeration” and publicly criticized laws criminalizing homosexual behavior in Uganda. The cardinal linked criminal sanctions for homosexuals as “probably commensurate with tradition.” The tradition referred to here is the cultural stigmatization of homosexuality in Africa. Turkson stated that one should understand the reasons for stigmatization because “just as there’s a sense of a call for rights, there’s also a call to respect culture, of all kinds of people,” he said. “So, if it’s being stigmatized, in fairness, it’s probably right to find out why it is being stigmatized.”

In an interview with CNN in 2013, when asked about whether he was worried that the sex abuse scandal in the Catholic Church would spread to Africa, Turkson stated that the stigmatization of homosexuality would probably prevent this. In his own words:

African traditional systems kind of protect or have protected its population against this tendency because in several communities, in several cultures in Africa homosexuality or for that matter any affair between two sexes of the same kind are not countenanced in our society.

For Cardinal Turkson, marriage, by nature, is between one man and one woman and cannot be redefined by the Church or the state. He believes same-sex “marriage” is not permissible as a matter of civil law. In an address to the Slovak Bishops’ Conference in 2014, the cardinal clearly articulated this point:

Related to this is the suggestion that marriage could somehow be redefined, despite the fact that marriage is, by nature, between one man and one woman for their mutual love and increase of the human family, as affirmed in international law. Such positions distort reality because they attempt to rewrite human nature, which de natura cannot be rewritten. . . . Marriage comes to us from nature. Christ sanctifies marriage as a sacrament for the baptized, giving it significance beyond its natural reality; the State protects marriage because it is essential to family and to the common good of society. But neither Church nor State invented marriage, and neither can change its nature.

But his views on homosexuality in general considerably loosened a year later and he now sees the Church’s position on the issue as evolving. When he told a homosexual advocacy group “we are all growing” with regard to criminalization of homosexual acts. Moreover, he told reporters later the same day that homosexuality is no longer considered a taboo in Africa “because it has been spoken of in an open way. If you think it is taboo, you should go to Russia.” Homosexuality, he added, was considered an “abnormality” in the United States in the 1970s, but “now it has changed.” He said countries that “do not accept [homosexuality] need further education” and that although a “lot of countries have learned . . . we need to let them grow and improve.”

In 2023, he sparked outrage in his native Ghana by telling the pro-LGBT BBC that he opposed a proposed law to criminalize homosexuality. He stated that LGBTQ+ individuals should not be criminalized as they have committed no crime, a stance that contrasted sharply with the official position of the Ghanaian Catholic bishops which supported the law.

Polygamy and the Dubia

Cardinal Turkson has spoken of the complexity of providing pastoral care to polygamous families, a common problem in parts of Africa. Taking a nuanced approach to the issue, the cardinal is in favor of pastoral discretion when directing and dealing with polygamous families. For example, at the 2005 Synod of Bishops in the Vatican, Turkson said:

You can’t just say to a man, let the other [wives] go and stay with the first wife. . . . There’s a question of justice. You can ask the man to provide for her ongoing security, setting up a small business for her, for example. . . . There’s also [the wives’] need for a sexual partner. . . . You can’t just say to everyone they should be celibate. You don’t want to expose them to prostitution and so on.

Turkson called for an open dialogue between Pope Francis and the cardinals who wrote the dubia on the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia, saying all parties involved should debate the controversy on a stage. The cardinal expressed perplexity at Pope Francis’ silence in response to the dubia.

Immigration

Cardinal Turkson has a nuanced understanding of migration and acknowledges that the solution to immigration at a policy level is not straightforward. In a 2016 interview, the cardinal stated that “the causes of it are not the same,” and he identified four separate causes of movement among peoples:

From Latin America to the U.S., a motivation that’s economic essentially, from sub-Saharan Africa to Europe; the motivation essentially is economic, apart from a few random cases like Boko Haram and security and conflict in Nigeria. Then there’s a movement from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Middle East towards Europe. They’re clearly [issues of] security and conflict. Then, from South East Asia towards Australia and Singapore, there are two things: religious persecution, Buddhist elements and the economic thing. So for these various reasons, people are on the move now.

Turkson has not advocated for an immigration policy that requires wealthy countries to grant permanent residence to migrants seeking to escape poverty. Rather, the cardinal has identified two conflicting values that should be addressed. In 2017, he responded to a question about current U.S. immigration by stating:

These are two core values that may be in conflict: You provide safety for your people, yes, but would ensuring the safety of the U.S. alone lead to general safety for the world? Is there also a global value that needs to be looked at, instead of a simple national value?

Islam and Interreligious Dialogue

In discussing the role of the dicastery he headed until 2022, the cardinal has identified the problem that Islam poses to the growth of the Catholic Church. He stated that “the first challenge comes from Islamic countries” because “they have a lot of resources, building mosques everywhere, encouraging and paying for conversions.” Turkson identified the incompatibility of Islam with human freedom in situations of forced Islamic conversions where groups provide material goods as an incentive.

During the 2012 Synod of Bishops, Cardinal Turkson screened a controversial and inflammatory video about Europe’s growing Muslim population. Shortly after the video screening, the cardinal said he regretted showing the film and clarified that the “point was not to be anti-Islam,” but rather, to “highlight the demographic situation as a result of the antilife tendency and culture in the Western world.” Ghana has a large Islamic population, and Turkson seems to have a relatively good understanding of the Muslim community because his paternal uncle was a Muslim. In discussing the high population of Muslims in Ghana, the cardinal differentiated between moderate Muslims and “the movement of purifying Islam.” Turkson has expressed concern that this movement is making Ghana “less tolerant of non-Islamic elements in society.”

As part of his advocacy of interreligious dialogue, Turkson has signaled his openness to dialogue with Muslims of goodwill. In 2009, the cardinal invited the African bishops “to overcome their fears and past burdens (relationships between the Arab world and black Africa), and to establish partnerships with Muslims of good will, so as to reduce tensions.” For the cardinal “in the pursuit of the common good and other social/humanitarian values with non-Christians, praiseworthy approaches inspired by Christian values help win esteem and respect for one’s religion.”

Politics and Finance

The cardinal argues that education is integral to a greater understanding of the purpose of politics as serving the common good. Turkson understands that individual Christian formation for politicians will enable them to carry out their role of serving the common good effectively. Cardinal Turkson has called for the training of “men and women politicians,” which includes:

A solid Christian formation (the Bible, moral theology, the social teachings of the Church, Church History) and with juridical tools that will enable them to defend Christian values (especially the family) and thus contribute positively to the formulation of legislative texts which respect Christian moral values.

In a note, “Towards Reforming the International Financial and Monetary Systems in the Context of Global Public Authority,” written by the dicastery, urging reform of the international financial system in 2011, Turkson highlighted the importance of submitting secondary political goals to the service of the global common good. He stated that: Every individual and every community shares in promoting and preserving the common good. To be faithful to their ethical and religious vocation, communities of believers should take the lead in asking whether the human family has adequate means at its disposal to achieve the global common good.

In the same note, Turkson advocated for an international public authority to oversee the financial system. In a talk on the subject in 2019, Turkson stated that “local and global economics must be viewed not only in terms of production and distribution, but also in terms of their effect on the environment, the dignity of people and the way it ensures their well-being.”

Cardinal Turkson has brushed off criticism that the modern Church has lost its Christocentric focus and become too man-centered and horizontal. “We’ve heard that, too, but for me, it’s not either/or,” he said in 2016. “The separation has never been this or that, that we’ve been horizontal and now we’re vertical. The Church by its character can never be purely horizontal or purely vertical.”

LAUDATO SI’

Care for creation has been a central theme of Cardinal Turkson’s episcopate. The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace took part in the drafting of the Encyclical Laudato Si’. Pope Francis has commented that Cardinal Turkson and his team prepared the first draft of the encyclical letter. Since its publication in 2015, Cardinal Turkson has traveled to a range of forums to speak about the main themes of the encyclical. He has made a number of statements regarding the direct connection between care for the environment and respect for human dignity.

Cardinal Turkson has advocated for a human-rights-based approach to environmental policy. The cardinal views environmental issues through the lens of what he has called “integral ecology,” which acts “as a paradigm able to articulate the fundamental relationships of the person with God, with him/herself, with other human beings, with creation.” Turkson’s broad approach to human and ecological development was summarized well in his address on Laudato Si’ to a “High Level Event on Climate Change” in 2015:

Laudato Si’ insists that the plight of the poor and the fragility of the planet are intimately related, and so encourages the world’s governments to embrace integral ecology as the necessary approach to such development, inclusive of all and protective of the earth. . . . Overcoming poverty and reducing environmental degradation will require the human community seriously to review the dominant model of development, production, commerce and consumption. . . . The political dimension needs to re-establish democratic control over the economy and finance, that is, over the basic choices made by human societies.

In describing the “broad vision” of Laudato Si’, the cardinal stated that “humanity is not separate from the environment in which we live; rather humanity and the natural environment are one.” He has also spoken about the harmful effect of certain human activities on the environment, particularly the climate. For Turkson, “the accelerating change in climate is undeniable, catastrophic, worsened by human activities, but also amenable to human intervention.” This anthropocentric problem has an anthropocentric solution for Turkson, who stated that “we must address the ethical nature of our crisis, both through dialogue, and by recovering our fundamental spiritual dimension.”

Cardinal Turkson’s emphasis on environmentalism is inseparable from the pro-life cause and integrally connected to it. Again, this perspective is embedded in the viewpoint of integral ecology illustrated by the cardinal’s statement “When we abuse one relationship or one justice, we trample on everything.” In discussing care for the environment vis-à-vis life issues, Cardinal Turkson indicated that while care for the environment is a policy consideration that can be realized in many ways, abortion and the death penalty take precedence and are different in kind. ⁸Cardinal Turkson states that opposition to abortion and the death penalty are part of “our religion.”

He also sees anthropocentric climate change as rooted in original sin. “Climate change could be understood as a symptom of the disordered and exploitative human conduct the scriptures attribute to sin in human life, after the original disobedience to God,” he said in 2021. “The orderly relationship which corresponds to the biblical mandate ‘to till and to keep’ is replaced by activities with little or no regard for the interrelatedness of parts needed to maintain a wholesome balance within creation.”

Turkson understands the common good as considering the good of future generations. For the cardinal, care for the environment is closely connected to care for human life, for the vulnerable, and for future generations. In his address to child-focused agencies in 2015, Turkson spoke about the requirements of justice in the following terms:

Thinking about the needs and the world of children now and yet to be born is also an index of justice. The common good is not just horizontal (the good of everyone now) but vertical (the good of future generations).

Although he has advocated for environmental policy change in line with this view of integral ecology, the cardinal has warned that “it is imperative that practical proposals not be developed in an ideological, superficial or reductionist way.” In his presentation in the ECO-SOC Chamber in 2015, Turkson made it clear that “there are certain environmental issues where it is not easy to achieve a broad consensus” and that “the Church does not presume to settle scientific questions or to replace politics.”

LEADERSHIP OF PONTIFICAL ACADEMIES

Since he took over from Bishop Sanchez Sorondo in April 2022 as chancellor of the pontifical academies, Cardinal Turkson has continued his predecessor’s engagement with global issues focusing on integrating the Church’s social teachings with broader humanitarian goals. Usually those goals have a distinctly secular and, some argue, politically leftist and globalist focus, with an emphasis on climate concerns, migration, equality and diversity.

Turkson has hosted regular conferences at the Pontifical Academy of Sciences which include:

•   Care for Our Common Home (Workshop, 4 October 2022): This workshop focused on environmental issues and the Vatican’s commitment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
•   Basic Science for Human Development, Peace, and Planetary Health (Plenary Session, 8-10 September 2022): This session addressed massive health problems and the need for science-based solutions.
•   Resilience of People and Ecosystems under Climate Stress(Workshop, 13-14 July 2022): This initiative aimed to bring together researchers, policymakers, and faith leaders to tackle climate-related challenges.
•   Reconstructing the Future for People and Planet (Workshop, 9-10 June 2022): The focus was on global warming, biodiversity loss, social inequality, and forced migration.

At the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, Turkson has hosted a variety of conferences on such themes as finance, sustainability, peace-making, colonization and helping people with disabilities. For instance:

•   Private Capital and Public Purpose (Workshop, 26-27 October 2023): Discussed the role of Development Finance Institutions in achieving sustainable economies.
•   Pacem in Terris: War and Other Obstacles to Peace (Workshop, 19-20 September 2023): Marked the 60th anniversary of Pope John XXIII’s encyclical letter Pacem in Terris.
•   Webinar on How to Promote Better Human and Social Conditions for Persons with Disabilities (Workshop, 4-6 December 2023): This event focused on improving conditions for individuals with disabilities.
•   Dialogue Between Civilizations on Global Commons (Workshop, 27-28 June 2023): This workshop emphasized the need for global cooperation on shared resources.
•   Colonization, Decolonization, and Neocolonialism from the Perspective of Justice and the Common Good (Workshop, 30-31 March 2023): The workshop underscored the need for global cooperation to address the ongoing effects of colonization and neocolonial practices. It called for the inclusion of native peoples and displaced ethnic groups in political decision-making processes to ensure fair representation and justice.
•   The Fraternal Economy of Integral and Sustainable Development(Workshop, 2-3 February 2023): Investigated the philosophical foundations of sustainable economies.

On May 16, 2024, the academies held a summit of world mayors and governors to discuss the theme “From Climate Crisis to Climate Resilience,” focusing on addressing climate change and promoting resilience strategies. The meeting led to the signing of a protocol on environmental protection which was intended to be submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Those participating included largely politically leftist or center-left mayors and governors including California governor Gavin Newsom, Boston mayor Michelle Wu, London mayor Sadiq Khan, Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo, and Rome mayor Roberto Gualtieri.

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  In a 2005 interview, when asked about inculturation of the liturgy in Africa, the cardinal stated that “the use of the tom-tom, our concepts, our way of representation, our chants, our dances are our gifts with which we want to adore the Lord. The Holy See doesn’t impose vetoes on us but does invite us to take care that these modes of inculturation don’t get perceived as a pagan cult or a simple spectacle. It is the task of us African bishops to watch that it doesn’t happen.”
• 2
  Cardinal Peter K. A. Turkson, “The Eucharist and the Care for Creation,” Pontificium Consilium De Iustitia Et Pace, 27 January 2016
• 3
  Cardinal Peter K.A. Turkson, foreword to Understanding the Mass: Historical, Biblical, Theological, and Liturgical Perspectives, by Bishop Joseph Osei-Bonsu (New York: Paulist Press, 2017).
• 4
  Cardinal Peter K. A. Turkson, “The Eucharist and the Care for Creation,” Pontificium Consilium De Iustitia Et Pace, 27 January 2016
• 5
  Renewal Ministries, April 2007
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  Renewal Ministries, April 2007
• 7
  These comments show Turkson’s support for Dei Verbum, the historicity of the Gospels, and the inerrancy of Scripture.
• 8
  Cardinal Turkson states that opposition to abortion and the death penalty are part of “our religion.”