K
Karl_Keating
Guest
David Bawden lives in a rural town in Kansas and says he is Pope Michael I.
He is one of several anti-popes, claimants to the papal throne. Like the others, he says the popes following Pius XII (namely John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul I, and John Paul II) have not been real popes at all. This makes Bawden the immediate successor to Pius XII.
In May he was interviewed by Dutch Catholic Television. You can see a printed report (in Dutch) at katholieknederland.nl/actualiteit/nieuws/nieuws_388782.html
Especially interesting are the photos of him: in a field, in his attic workroom, on a swing on his porch, in a chair with his house in the background.
You also might want to see Bawden’s own site: popemichael.homestead.com/index.html
There you can read a few old newspaper reports. One explains that Bawden was elected by the required two-thirds plus one majority of the six papal electors, two of whom were his own parents, who run a thrift store called The Question Mark.
According to a newspaper report, neighbors who were asked about the papal election said “no comment” "but then followed with giggles or even outright guffaws. Ron Henneberg, relaxing on the front porch of his home next door to the used-furniture shop now doing double duty as a papal chapel and office, said he took a more philosophical view than many.
“‘I don’t suppose it will change my life one way or the other,’ he said. ‘I guess we should have known something like this was bound to happen. But as long as they’re comfortable with their belief and they’re not hurting anybody, I figure they can do whatever they like.’”
The newspaper account does not explain what Henneberg was referring to in saying “something like this was bound to happen.” Perhaps there was a general acknowledgment of the Bawden family’s eccentricity.
He is one of several anti-popes, claimants to the papal throne. Like the others, he says the popes following Pius XII (namely John XXIII, Paul VI, John Paul I, and John Paul II) have not been real popes at all. This makes Bawden the immediate successor to Pius XII.
In May he was interviewed by Dutch Catholic Television. You can see a printed report (in Dutch) at katholieknederland.nl/actualiteit/nieuws/nieuws_388782.html
Especially interesting are the photos of him: in a field, in his attic workroom, on a swing on his porch, in a chair with his house in the background.
You also might want to see Bawden’s own site: popemichael.homestead.com/index.html
There you can read a few old newspaper reports. One explains that Bawden was elected by the required two-thirds plus one majority of the six papal electors, two of whom were his own parents, who run a thrift store called The Question Mark.
According to a newspaper report, neighbors who were asked about the papal election said “no comment” "but then followed with giggles or even outright guffaws. Ron Henneberg, relaxing on the front porch of his home next door to the used-furniture shop now doing double duty as a papal chapel and office, said he took a more philosophical view than many.
“‘I don’t suppose it will change my life one way or the other,’ he said. ‘I guess we should have known something like this was bound to happen. But as long as they’re comfortable with their belief and they’re not hurting anybody, I figure they can do whatever they like.’”
The newspaper account does not explain what Henneberg was referring to in saying “something like this was bound to happen.” Perhaps there was a general acknowledgment of the Bawden family’s eccentricity.
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