Who Will Replace the Pope? Cardinal Peter Turkson is a Possible Front-Runner

Impact

On the news that Pope Benedict will be stepping down, citing health concerns, speculation is beginning to take hold over who the front runner is to replace him. Several names keep coming up.

One is Cardinal Peter Turkson, a Ghanaian, who is currently president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. He was appointed to that post by the current Pope Benedict. Choosing Turkson would represent, in some ways, the future growth of the Catholic Church as it seeks to make inroads into Africa. 

Peter Turkson was born in western Africa to a Methodist mother and Catholic father and entered the seminary as a boy. He was chosen to move to the U.S. and study at a seminary in New York until he was ordained as a priest in 1975.