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Peter Turkson: the public face of Pope Francis's war on global warming
Source: The Guardian
Peter Turkson: the public face of Pope Francis's war on global warming
Stephanie Kirchgaessner
Wednesday 1 July 2015 09.08 BST
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.
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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.
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Stephanie Kirchgaessner
Wednesday 1 July 2015 09.08 BST
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.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
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.
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Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/01/peter-turkson-public-face-pope-franciss-war-global-warming
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