As the First General Congregation met yesterday, March 4, to prepare for the Conclave that will elect the next Pope, the 265th Successor to St. Peter, a Cardinal impostor invaded the procession trying to sneak entry into the Paul VI Hall in the Vatican, according to “ABC Eyewitness News”.
Keen eyed Swiss Guards spotted the Cardinal impostor who noticed his cassock and Crucifix were too short, his sash was simply a purple scarf and he donned a fedora upon his head. He was immediately escorted out, however, not before making it to Synod Square, just outside of the Paul VI Hall.
Telling reporters his name was Basilius and the member of a non-existent Italian Orthodox Church, the German native, Ralph Napierski, shook hands and took pictures with a few Cardinals prior to getting caught, according to the “Daily Mail”.
The Cardinal impostor is a child abuse protester letting reporters know that the Catholic Church has made “serious mistakes by allowing priests accused of sex crimes to move to different parishes elsewhere and cover up scandals instead of dealing with them. “
Apparently Napierski, who describes himself as a “slave and an apostle like Paul”, has a website in which he claims to be a Bishop within Corpus Dei and has uploaded videos to YouTube asserting to be “fighting the heresy and false movements inside the Roman Catholic Church.”
No information regarding the Cardinal impostor has come from the Vatican Press Office; however, the “Daily Mail” is reporting Father Lombardi joked when asked if he was aware of the incident.
I'm not aware of this at all - I was inside the hall and all those inside were real cardinals.
As of this morning, March 5, 110 Cardinal Electors were present, however five more are yet to arrive before a date for the Conclave can be set and voting can begin to elect the next Pontiff.
Sources: “ABC Eyewitness News”, “Daily Mail” and “News.VA”
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