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David Bawden

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David Bawden
Pope
Papacy beganJuly 16, 1990
Papacy endedAugust 2, 2022
Opposed toJohn Paul II
Benedict XVI
Francis
Orders
OrdinationDecember 11, 2011
by Robert Biarnesen
ConsecrationDecember 11, 2011
by Robert Biarnesen
Personal details
Born(1959-09-22)September 22, 1959
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
DiedAugust 2, 2022(2022-08-02) (aged 62)
Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
Ordination history
History
Diaconal ordination
Ordained byRobert Biarnesen
DateDecember 11, 2011
Priestly ordination
Ordained byRobert Biarnesen
DateDecember 11, 2011
Episcopal consecration
Consecrated byRobert Biarnesen
DateDecember 11, 2011

David Allen Bawden (September 22, 1959 – August 2, 2022),[1] who took the name Pope Michael, was an American citizen and a conclavist claimant to the papacy. He stated in 2009 that he had approximately 30 "solid followers."[2]

In 1990 Bawden was elected pope by a group of six laypeople, which included himself and his parents, who had come to believe that the Catholic Church had apostatized from the Catholic faith since Vatican II, and that there had been no legitimate popes elected since the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958.[3] In 2011, he was ordained a priest and consecrated a bishop by an Independent Catholic bishop.

Background

Bawden was born in 1959 to Clara (née Barton) and Kenneth Bawden.[1][4] In 1975, Bawden and his family began to follow the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). Bawden attended the SSPX seminary in Écône, Switzerland, and Saint Joseph's Priory in Armada, Michigan, but was dismissed from the seminary in 1978.[5]

Claim to the papacy

See also: Conclavism

Bawden believed that all the popes since the death of Pope Pius XII on October 9, 1958, were modernists, heretics, and apostates, and that, therefore, their elections were invalid because of the changes of Vatican II.[6] He considered them to have incurred latae sententiae (automatic) excommunication, not so much for violating Pope Pius X's laws on modernism,[6] as the laws of God.

Bawden said he was elected to the papacy in 1990, in a papal conclave attended by five other people, including his parents.[7] Bawden had invited hundreds of independently ordained bishops to attend the election, but none of them did so.[8]

Media appearances

Bawden was the subject in a chapter of the 2004 book What's the Matter with Kansas? by American journalist and historian Thomas Frank.[6]

In 2010, independent filmmaker Adam Fairholm created a feature-length documentary, Pope Michael.[9][10]

Holy orders

Bawden was ordained a priest and then consecrated a bishop on December 11, 2011, by an Independent Catholic episcopus vagans, Bishop Robert Biarnesen of the Duarte-Costa and Old Catholic episcopal lineages, although it is unknown whether proper form was used in the solo ordination and consecration.[11][12] Bawden claimed that he was able to validly confect Catholic sacraments, offer the Mass, ordain other men to the priesthood, and consecrate them as bishops as the Duarte-Costa and Old Catholic lineages are valid in the eyes of the church.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b Batesville, Inc. "Obituary for Father David A. Bawden at Davidson Funeral Home". www.davidsonfuneral.com. Retrieved August 2, 2022. {{cite web}}: |first= has generic name (help)
  2. ^ "Pope Michael" – Full Documentary, archived from the original on December 21, 2021, retrieved March 24, 2021
  3. ^ [1] Bawden, David. "About." – Vatican in Exile. N.p., n.d. Web. April 27, 2016. <http://vaticaninexile.com/about.php>.
  4. ^ Allen, John L. (2004). Conclave: The Politics, Personalities, and Process of the Next Papal Election. New York: Image/Doubleday. pp. 1–3. ISBN 978-0-385-50453-9.
  5. ^ Brisendine, Steve (May 30, 2005). "Despite few followers, 'Pope Michael' holds to beliefs". The Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  6. ^ a b c Frank, Thomas (2004). "Antipopes among us". What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America. Macmillan. pp. 217–224. ISBN 978-0-8050-7339-3.
  7. ^ Fox, Robin (2011). The Tribal Imagination: Civilization and the Savage Mind. Harvard University Press. p. 104. ISBN 9780674059016.
  8. ^ "Frequently Asked Questions – Vatican in Exile". Vatican in exile. Archived from the original on March 8, 2016. Retrieved March 24, 2021.
  9. ^ Coppen, Luke (February 29, 2012). "Today's Catholic must-reads". Catholic Herald. Retrieved April 29, 2012.
  10. ^ David Mills (February 28, 2012), "We have a Pope, but not that one", First Things, Institute on Religion and Public Life
  11. ^ Jarvis, Edward (2018). God, Land & Freedom: the true story of ICAB. Apocryphile Press. p. 169. ISBN 9781947826908.
  12. ^ Anderson, Phil (January 13, 2012). "Kansas 'pope' leads a flock in exile". The Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
  13. ^ Bawden, David. "Validity of The Ordination and Consecration of Pope Michael". Pope Michael. Retrieved March 27, 2019.
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