Peter Turkson: the public face of Pope Francis's war on global warming
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Version 0 of 1. When Pope Francis decided after his election in 2013 that he wanted to transform the Catholic church’s teaching on ecology and equality – and put a call for environmental action at the heart of his papacy – Peter Turkson might not have been considered the best candidate to lead the mission. Although the Ghanaian cardinal was seen as affable and charismatic, his judgment had been called into question a year earlier when he aired an alarmist YouTube video about Islam during a Vatican meeting of bishops. The video, called Muslim Demographics, was criticised as “fear-mongering” and “propaganda” by Vatican Radio. Even the Vatican spokesman distanced himself from the clip, saying it did not represent the bishops’ views. Turkson apologised, saying he had only wanted to highlight “the [western world’s] demographic situation as a result of [its] anti-life tendency”, and not to denigrate Islam. But it was not his last misstep. Inside the Vatican walls, where self-promotion is virtually a sin, Turkson’s reputation was hurt again after he was seen as pushing the idea that he might be considered the church’s first black pope after Benedict XVI resigned. He was among the media’s most talked-of possible pontiffs during the conclave that ultimately selected Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina. Those controversies, however, now seem a fleeting blip. Any lingering questions over Turkson’s role – or the confidence Pope Francis apparently has in him – have long since diminished. The cardinal has become the public face of what is now seen as the pope’s most pressing agenda: raising awareness about the dangers of global warming and pushing leaders to act. Turkson, who was named an archbishop in 1992 and was appointed by Pope Benedict as the Vatican’s point man on justice issues, continues to lead what looks like a rock star’s world tour to push the message of the encyclical. Early this week, the cardinal spoke to Unicef in New York, and on Wednesday he will speak at a Vatican press conference with activist Naomi Klein, who is known as a critic of capitalism. Klein told the Observer that she was “delighted” to have been invited by Turkson’s office and that it showed they were not “backing down from the fight” over climate change. It was Turkson who led the highly orchestrated press conference that officially unveiled the nearly 200-page encyclical, and it was the cardinal who appeared at a summit with UN chief Ban Ki-moon weeks before the encyclical’s release, where he warned that a “full conversion” of hearts would be needed to tackle the damage that is being wreaked on the earth by fossil fuel consumption. Turkson’s office has played down the role the cardinal played in shaping the sweeping tone of the encyclical, which was released last week and states that humans are mostly responsible for climate change and have a moral duty to change their habits before it is too late. Francis is known to have asked Turkson to write the first draft of the encyclical, but when asked to describe the African cardinal’s influence on the document, his deputy Michael Czerny, told the Guardian: “It is the Holy Father who is responsible for its content, structure and tone.” Quoting Turkson himself, Czerny added that “many” had participated in various phases of the encyclical and “remain unnamed”. But experts say that Turkson’s influence is evident. Anthony Annett, a climate expert at the Earth Institute at Columbia university, said he believed the concept of “integral ecology” – meaning that one cannot look at the environment in isolation from humans – was one that is peppered throughout the encyclical and is a theme that Turkson is known to espouse. Related: Pope's climate change encyclical tells rich nations: pay your debt to the poor “It means that when you harm the environment, you are also harming people and especially the poor: that it is all connected,” Annett said. “He is really a church leader in line with the temperament of Francis. He is an extremely humble man and very soft spoken and very effective at making his points.” Annett added: “He has the strong voice of a developing world bishop.” Experts say the fact he is African also contributes to the image that Francis is trying to set: that the church is global, and not one steeped in old world theocracy. Neil Thorns, director of advocacy for Cafod, the aid agency of the Catholic church in Wales and England, said the Pope and Turkson were bringing a new spirit of dialogue and inclusion into the church. “Previously there had maybe been a kind of hesitancy to engage groups outside the immediate circle in Rome,” said Thorns. “Now I think with Francis and Turkson you see an openness to engage with us and that fits in with Francis’s message of being a poor church for the poor.” |