Peter III | |
|---|---|
| Supreme Pontiff of thePalmarian Catholic Church Patriarch of El Palmar de Troya | |
.jpg) Official portrait, 2025 | |
| Installed | 22 April 2016 |
| Predecessor | Gregory XVIII |
| Opposed to | Francis (2016–2025) Leo XIV (2025–present) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Markus Josef Odermatt[1] |
| Denomination | Palmarian Catholic Church (claims to be theCatholic Church) |
| Motto | De Glória Ecclésiæ ("Glory of the Church") |
Peter III (bornMarkus Josef Odermatt; 13 March 1966), also known by thereligious nameEliseo María de la Santa Faz, is the fourthpope of thePalmarian Catholic Church who, in this capacity, claims to be the 266th pope of theCatholic Church from 22 April 2016 to the present.[3][a] He succeeded Palmarian Pope Gregory XVIII (Ginés Jesús Hernández), to whom he had earlier served as Palmarian Secretary of State, after Hernández left the Palmarian Church and reconciled with theVatican.[3]
Odermatt was born inStans, Canton of Nidwalden, in Switzerland. He claims to be a descendant of SaintNicholas of Flüe. He joined theOrder of Carmelites of the Holy Face in 1985 and worked for eighteen years as a missionary in South America. He served as the order's secretary of state from 2011 until 2016.[6] In 2016 he succeededGinés Jesús Hernández as pope of the Palmarian Catholic Church, taking the papal name Peter III. He has his episcopal seat at theCathedral-Basilica of Our Crowned Mother of Palmar.
Some months later he published anencyclical letter, in which he accused his predecessor of discrediting his former church and of stealing two million euros from thePalmarian Catholic Church, alongside several goods (including aBMW X6): he subsequently declared him anapostate,excommunicated him and declared all of his acts to benull and void. Hernández denies the charges of stealing.[7]
Odermatt disbanded the papal guard corps instituted by his predecessor, deeming it unnecessary for his security.[8] In 2018 he travelled to the United States for the first time to participate at a "Eucharistic,Marian andJosephine Congress".[9]
During his office, the Palmarian Catholic Church established an online presence for the first time, opening a website and accounts onFacebook,Instagram,Twitter andPinterest and a channel onYouTube.[10][11]
Supporters of the modern Vatican consider Odermatt to be anAntipope and believe that the current head of the Catholic Church is Robert Prevost (Leo XIV), an American from Chicago.[12] Conversely, the exact inverse is believed by Palmarian Catholics: namely that Pope Peter III is the "true Pope" and Prevost ("Antipope Leo XIV") is an Antipope.
| Religious titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Palmarian Pope Patriarch of El Palmar de Troya 2016–present | Succeeded by incumbent |
| Catholic Church titles | ||
| Preceded by | Pope of the Catholic Church (claim in rivalry with Vatican) 2016–present | Succeeded by incumbent |
| History |  | |
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