Antipape

A antipape is a person who claims to exert the function and to carry the title of Pape of the Roman Catholic church, but the advent with this load or more is not recognized today like regular and valid. It is thus in theory about a usurper, though some could in good faith believe pope.

Popes and antipapes

During certain turbulent periods of the history of the Church, irregular elections related to the papal throne of the applicants whereas a pope exerted already. Others antipapes were elected during one vacancy of the throne in an irregular way. Lastly, it happened that the voters are divided into rival factions and elect two different popes the same day. Many of these antipapes was simply named by sovereigns to serve their own interest, but it should however be noted that the nomination was at certain periods of the history a legitimate means to designate the pope.

If the case of the majority of the antipapes is easy to determine, chaos of the history of the Church always do not make it possible to establish with certainty which was regularly pope and who was antipape. Certain cases were distinct well later. Others still make debate (to read on this subject the introduction of the article detailed Liste of the popes ). The regularity of an election is not always the only factor taken into account to decide: sometimes the competition between two enemy popes perduré because it was impossible to say which was less illegitimate than the other. In the Innocent case of the competition between II and Anaclet II, for example, the history sliced for the first after natural death of the second. In the case of the Great schism of Occident, a council deposited the three rival popes, a fourth elected some, and it is afterwards that it was decided that only would be regarded as legitimate the popes of Rome and illegitimate those of Avignon and Pisa, while at the same time this council had been initially convened by the pope of Pisa. Lastly, in the case of the competition between Leon VIII and Benoit V, the list of the Annuario pontificio did not slice and recognizes them legitimate both!

The recognition a posteriori of certain popes and the exclusion of others caused anomalies in the classification of the names of the popes.

In theory one retains as antipapes only those which knew a certain audience and which were supported by sovereigns or States. That in general excludes from people like both Benoît XIV and all the contemporary “antipapes” which have only one handle of faithful.

Antipapes of the beginnings of Christianity and the Early middle ages

The first of the antipapes, Hippolyte, was elected in opposition to the pope Calixte I {{er}} by a schismatic group with Rome at the third century. Hippolyte finished however his life in exile in the mines of Sardinia, following imperial persecutions, in company of the official successor of Calixte I {{er}}, Pontien, and reconciled himself with the Catholic church.

  • antipape Hippolyte, pontificate from 217 to 235

  • antipape Novatien, pontificate from 251 to 258 (?)
  • antipape Felix II, pontificate from 355 to 365
  • antipape Ursin, pontificate from 366 to 367
  • antipape Eulalien, pontificate from 418 to 419
  • antipape Laurent, pontificate in 498 and from 501 to 505
  • antipape Dioscore, pontificate in 530
  • antipape Theodore II, pontificate in 687
  • antipape Pascal Ier, pontificate from 687 to 692
  • antipape Constantin II, pontificate from 767 to 769
  • antipape Philippe, pontificate from 767 to 768
  • antipape Jean VIII, pontificate in 844
  • antipape Anastase III the Librarian, pontificate in 855
  • antipape Sergius (pope), pontificate in 891
  • antipape Christophore, pontificate from 903 to 904
  • antipape Benoit V, pontificate from 964 to 966
  • antipape Boniface VII, pontificate in 974 and from 984 to 985
  • antipape Jean XVI, pontificate from 996 to 998
  • antipape Gregoire VI, pontificate in 1012
  • the pope Sylvestre III (1045) is very often regarded as a antipape, but is recognized legitimates by list Annuario pontificio .
  • the pope Gregoire VI (1045 - 1046) is sometimes regarded as a antipape.
  • the pope Clément VI (1046 - 1047) is sometimes regarded as a antipape.
  • antipape Benoit X, pontificate of 1058 to 1059
  • antipape Honorius II Cadalus, pontificate of 1061 to 1072
  • antipape Clement III, pontificate in 1080 and of 1084 to 1100
  • antipape Thierry (or Théodoric), pontificate of 1100 to 1102
  • antipape Albert, pontificate in 1102
  • antipape Sylvestre IV Maginulfe, pontificate of 1105 to 1111
  • antipape Gregoire VIII, pontificate of 1118 to 1121
  • the transitory pope Célestin II which was constrained to abdicate as soon as elected in 1124 is often considered wrongly like a antipape.
  • antipape Anaclet II, pontificate of 1130 to 1138
  • antipape Victor IV, pontificate in 1138
  • antipape Victor IV, pontificate of 1159 to 1164
  • antipape Pascal III, pontificate of 1164 to 1168
  • antipape Calixte III, pontificate of 1168 to 1178 Innocent
  • antipape III, pontificate of 1179 to 1180
  • antipape Nicolas V, pontificate of 1328 to 1330

Great schism of Occident

Into 1378, papacy was divided into two rival lines, that of Rome and that of Avignon. That of Rome was divided into 1409 with the appearance of the popes of Pisa. Afterwards many vicissitudes, the Concile of Constancy deposited the three popes and elected in 1417 a single pope: Martin V. The popes of Rome are only regarded today as legitimate. If those of Avignon were early declared antipapes, those of Pisa made debate a long time.

Popes of Rome (legitimate)

  • Urbain VI, pontificate of 1378 to 1389
  • Boniface IX, pontificate of 1389 to 1404 Innocent
  • VII, pontificate of 1404 to 1406
  • Gregoire XII, pontificate of 1406 to 1415

Popes of Avignon (antipapes)

  • antipape Clement VII, pontificate of 1378 to 1394
  • antipape Benoit XIII, pontificate of 1394 to 1423
  • antipape Clement VIII, pontificate of 1423 to 1429
  • antipapes Benoit XIV, pontificate of 1425 to 1430

Popes of Pisa (antipapes)

  • antipape Alexandre V, pontificate of 1409 to 1410
  • antipape Jean XXIII, pontificate of 1410 to 1415

After the great schism of Occident

  • antipape Felix V, pontificate of 1439 to 1449

The business of the great schism of Occident had weakened the prestige of papacy considerably. From now on, the opposition to the pope was expressed less and less by the search for another candidate for the station, and more and more by the negation of the function of pope it even. Obediences resulting from later schisms did without pope; it was the end of the antipapes and the beginning of the Protestant Réforme with the turning of the 16th century.

Antipapes contemporaries

If the Annuario pontificio does not count any more a antipape after 1449, certain catholics traditionalists regard the Rite paulinien, which replaced the Rite tridentin after the Concile Vatican II, as heretic. They quote the bubble of Paul IV Cum ex Apostolatus of the February 15th 1559 which declares null and not avenue the nomination of a guilty prelate of Hérésie. They thus define Jean XXIII, Paul VI, Jean-Paul I {{er}}, Jean-Paul II and Benoît XVI like antipapes. The Sédévacantisme is doctrines which affirm the vacancy of the pontifical capacity. Certain groups claiming itself some however named their own popes.

Antipapes of fiction

See also: Antipapes imaginary

See too

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