Conclavism

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Not to be confused with Conclavist, an assistant to a cardinal during a papal conclave.

Conclavism is the practice that exists since the second half of the 20th century which consists in the convening of a conclave - a human institution - to elect rival popes ('antipopes') to the current pope of Rome. This method is used by some Catholics - often sedevacantists - who do not accept the legitimacy of their present papacy. Those who hold the position that a conclave can be convened to elect a pope to rival the current pope of Rome are called Conclavists.[1]

This claim is usually associated with the claim, known as sedevacantism, that the present holder of the title of pope is not pope, which implies they consider they have the right to elect a pope. However, not all Sedevacantists are Conclavists.[1]

Conclavism is different from what Chryssides calls the "Mysticalists" phenomenon, which is that of people declaring themselves popes after receiving a personnal mystical revelation, as in the latter case no human institution is used to have a pope appointed. This latter case is found for example with the Apostles of Infinite Love.[1]

The term "Conclavism" comes from the word "conclave", the term for a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, when that see is vacant.

Description[]

The description and explanation of Conclavism of Chryssides is:[1]

Since most Sedevacantists (although not all) object to Pope John XXIII's modernization of the Roman Catholic Church, they argue that he nullified his appointment to the papacy in 1958. It is therefore inferred that the conclave of cardinals who elected him was also invalid. Conclavists, however, hold that the method of electing a pope by a conclave remains the valid process and hence that it is necessary for a conclave to be reconstituted and convened. Since none of the members of that [Pope John XXIII] conclave remain alive, one must resort to the principle of epikeia ('reasonableness'), and that membership of a conclave should be drawn from the faithful community who are invited.

History[]

The idea of "reconvening a conclave arose in the late 1960s and early 1970s". One of the first proponents of the idea is Joaquín Sáenz y Arriaga, a Mexican priest.[1]

The first to claim (in 1978) to have been elected Pope in this way was the Croatian, Mirko Fabris,[1] a stand-up comic who performed under the jocose name "Krav" (a masculinization of the feminine noun krava, meaning "cow").[2]

A non-jocose claim was that of David Bawden, who in the late 1980s promoted the idea of a papal election and ultimately sent out over 200 copies of a book of his to the editors of all the sedevacantist publications he could find, and to all the priests listed in a directory of traditionalists as being sedevacantists.[3] He was then elected in 1990 by a group of six people who included himself and his parents, and took the name "Pope Michael".[4][1]

Conclavist claimants to the papacy[]

  • Pope Krav I. Mirko Fabris, elected in 1978 in Zagreb, Croatia,[1] died in 2012.
  • Pope Michael. David Allen Bawden. In 1990 six people, which included Bawden's parents, elected Bawden who took the name Pope Michael.[1][5]
  • Pope Linus II. Another conclave, this time held in Assisi, Italy, elected the South African Victor von Pentz, an ex-seminarian of the Society of St Pius X, as Pope Linus II in 1994. Linus took up residence in Hertfordshire, England.[1][6]
  • Pope Pius XIII. In October 1998, the U.S.-based True Catholic Church elected Friar Lucian Pulvermacher as Pope Pius XIII. He died on November 30, 2009. No successor has been named since his death.[1]
  • Pope Leo XIV. On 24 March 2006 a group of 34 elected the Argentine Oscar Michaelli as Pope Leo XIV. On his death in 2007, Leo XIV was succeeded by Juan Bautista Cardinal Bonetti, who took the name of Pope Innocent XIV, but resigned in three months later. He was succeeded by Alejandro Tomas Cardinal Greico, who took the name of Pope Alexander IX.[1]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Chryssides, George D. (2012). "CONCLAVISM.". Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-7967-6.
  2. ^ "Mirko Fabris Krav". en.standup.si. Retrieved 2021-11-15.
  3. ^ "Pope Michael reply Bateman". catholiccouncil.homestead.com. Archived from the original on 25 October 2006. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  4. ^ Fox, Robin (2011). The Tribal Imagination: Civilization and the Savage Mind. Harvard University Press. p. 104. ISBN 9780674059016.
  5. ^ Staff (2006-12-06). "10 Most Bizarre People on Earth". Oddee. Retrieved 2021-11-15.
  6. ^ Claudio Rendina, La santa casta della Chiesa (Newton Compton Editori 2010 ISBN 978-8-85412683-1)
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