UNITED STATES
Religion News Service

David Gibson | Feb 21, 2013

(RNS) Will the conclave electing a new pope next month have an “Obama moment” and pick someone from Africa or Latin America or Asia for the first time in modern history?

The public seems enamored of the idea of a non-European pope, and even many cardinals — whose votes are the only ones that count — are openly pushing the idea of a “pope of color” to follow Benedict XVI, a German theologian.

“I think in a way the church is always and has forever been ready for a non-European pope,” Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana told reporters after Benedict announced that he was resigning at the end of February.

The appeal of a non-European pope is understandable as it seems to reflect the hope that the church at the top of the pyramid would finally reflect the…