A
German man who disguised himself as a bishop was booted out of a closed-door
Vatican meeting after he bypassed security checkpoints.
According
to the Telegraph, Ralph Napierski dressed in imitation
ecclesiastical robes and told reporters that his name was Basilius and that he
was a bishop from an order called Corpus Dei of the Italian Orthodox Church
(neither of which exist).
Napierski posed for photos and mingled with more than
140 cardinals outside of Paul VI Hall before apparently trying to blend into
the crowd and sifting into the top-secret meeting. But as soon as Napierski had
gained access to the conference, he was forcibly removed by Swiss Guards.
The
Vatican guards were reportedly tipped off by the fact that Napierski’s
vestments didn’t quite look like all the other bishops’. While other Catholic
prelates wore traditional red sashes, Napierski donned an imitation magenta scarf
around his waist, and a shorter cassock and different crucifix than the real
bishops wear. In place of a skullcap, Napierski wore a black fedora.
Napierski
runs a blog, titled Corpus Dei, named for the
order he claims he founded, which is described as a “Catholic Order after
episcopal law.” “Bishop
Ralph Napierski is a Catholic bishop under the primacy of Pope Benedict XVI,
and he is in union with the Roman Catholic Church,” he writes on the blog.
“Bishop Ralph is a slave and apostle like St. Paul.”
Napierski
also runs a separate blog, called Jesus Yoga, that is
intended to educate followers about “hidden techniques of Christian
meditation.” Napierski
writes that “meditation in the presence and aura of relics is very powerfull
and effective since relics radiate a special energy [sic]” and that it can lead
“into Christ consciousness.”
Before
being kicked out of the conference, he told reporters that he believed Catholic
bishops were wrong to move priests who had been accused of sexual abuse around
various parishes.
Meanwhile an earlier version of this story misidentified Ralph Napierski as Italian. He is, in fact, German
There are no swiss guards in the Vatican now, they left when the pope left and will resume when there is a new pope.
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