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Cardinal Appiah Turkson marks 72nd birthday
His Eminence Peter Cardinal Kodwo Appiah Turkson, prefect of Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human right, turns 72 today.
Cardinal Appiah Turkson was born on 11th October 1948 at Wassaw Nsuta to a Methodist mother and a Roman Catholic father, in the Sekondi-Takoradi Diocese, Western Region . After his studies into the presbyterate, Cardinal Turkson was ordained a priest by Archbishop Kwadwo Amissah on the 20th of July 1975. He was appointed as the Archbishop of Cape Coast on 6th October 1992 and later ordained Bishop on 27th March 1993.
In 21st Ocober 2003, Pope John Paul ll elevated him to be Cardinal, which qualified him to be a candidate for election to the papacy. He is the first Ghanaian Cardinal in the history of the Catholic church.
He once served as the president of the Ghana Catholic Bishops Conference between 1997 to 2005. He was also the Chancellor of the Catholic University of Ghana, Sunyani beginning in 2003.
Cardinal Turkson was appointed and installed Cardinal-Priest of San Liborio, Rome 24th October 2003 and 18th March 2004 respectively. He became the President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace between 24th October 2009 and28th February 2013. Also, in October 2010 he was named to a renewable member of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith by Pope Benedict.
In 2013, after the resignation of Pope Benedict the XVI, Cardinal Appiah Turkson was identified by the media as a possible candidate for the position of the papacy, which eventually was assumed by Pope Francis.
He was appointed prefect of Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development by Pope Francis in August 2016.
Cardinal Appiah Turkson had always left a mark on various Christian platforms across the world sharing views and opinions on matters relating to the Catholic church and beyond , on various aspect of human development such as spirituality, economic , health, etc.
-Ghana Catholic News