Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah taking the Oath of Secrecy on Wednesday, May 8, 2025
Ghana’s Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson has been tagged as one of the favourites to be chosen as the leader of the Catholic Church at the ongoing Conclave to elect the next Pope at the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican.
Visuals from the Sistine Chapel, sighted by GhanaWeb, captured Cardinal Turkson during the procession to the chapel for the commencement of the conclave.
One of the videos also captured the moment the Ghanaian Cardinal took his Oath of Secrecy before the commencement of the voting for the next Pope.
Cardinal Turkson, with his hand on the Book of Gospels, is heard saying: “Et ego Petrus Cardinalis Kodwo Turkson spondeo, voveo ac iuro. Sic me Deus adiuvet et haec Sancta Dei Evangelia, quae manu mea tango.”
This translates as, “And I, Peter Cardinal Kodwo Turkson, so promise, pledge and swear. So help me God and these Holy Gospels which I touch with my hand.”
About Cardinal Appiah Turkson:
Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson is the Chancellor of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences and the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
He previously served as the Archbishop of Cape Coast, from 1992 to 2009.
Cardinal Appiah Turkson, who is currently 76 years old, was made a cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2003.
Pope Francis died on Easter Monday, April 21, 2025, following a cerebral stroke which led to a coma and irreversible heart failure.
He is Ghana’s first cardinal and has held several key positions at the Vatican, including being the first Prefect of the Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development, former President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and the Treasurer of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM).
He also served on several Vatican bodies, including the Methodist-Catholic Dialogue (since 1997), the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (since 2002), and the Pontifical Commission for the Cultural Goods of the Church (since 2002).
Watch the video of Cardinal Turkson below:
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