A Prejudiced Papal Election

After reading the Gawker article Cardinal Favored to Become First Black Pope Blames Gay Priests for the Churches Sexual Abuse Scandals, a number of questions came to mind: Have all Popes been white? How much power does the church have? Does Cardinal Peter Turkson really think there are no homosexuals in Africa?

1.  Have all Popes been white?

According to Wikipedia’s List of Popes, 99.9% of Popes have been white and the majority of them coming from European countries. One previous Pope, St Miltiades was believed to be from Northern Africa (Algeria or Morocco). However, you can see in this graph from The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life that over the last 100 years, the concentration of Catholics has shifted from Europe to Latin America/Caribbean with substantial gains in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. So when will the church catch up with the times and elect a minority for the Papal office? Or a woman, for that matter? Oh wait, women can’t be priests because Jesus was a man, and a woman couldn’t possibly be Christ-like (but I won’t get into that here).

2. How much power does the church have?

According to The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, Catholics make up 16% of the world’s population (roughly 1.1 billion people). Historically, the Church retained its power through language. Conquergood’s point that “subordinate people experience texts and the bureaucracy of literacy as instruments of control and displacement” (p. 147) applies to the Catholic Church too. The scriptures used to be written and spoken in Latin which most commoners did not speak, nor could they even read or write. And, ever hear of the Inquisition? Mess with the Church and you’re dead, ‘nuff said. Today, the Church still wields its power to cover up sex abuse scandals. Thankfully, it’s finally come under fire. Perhaps Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation will initiate a change in the way the Church is run. However, as an institution that dates back to the First Century, is that even possible?

3. Does Cardinal Peter Turkson really think there are no homosexuals in Africa?

In the Gawker article, Turkson is quoted saying, "African traditional systems kind of protect or have protected its population against this tendency," he said. "Because in several communities, in several cultures in Africa homosexuality or for that matter any affair between two sexes of the same kind are not countenanced in our society." According to this NPR interview with AllAfrica.com reporter Saratu Abiola, “homosexuality is already illegal in more than 30 African nations.” In fact, Abiola says that sexuality whether hetero or homo just isn’t talked about. It makes it more distant and “its easy to otherize”. Stories in class from our own Tanzanian liaison, Maureen, have also confirmed this idea behind homosexuality not being legal, talked about or “in existence” in Africa, when we all know that to be untrue.  Why does Turkson believe that his people are “protected” from homosexuality? Why does he believe that they need to be “protected”?

Do any other questions come to mind when reading this article from an intercultural or international perspective?

Note: I am looking at this from a non-Catholic, white, female perspective. I apologize if my reactions to these questions are offensive in anyway.