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Bible Dictionaries
Benedict Xiii, Anti-Pope
1910 New Catholic Dictionary
or
Antipope (1394-1417), born Illueca, Aragon, Spain, 1328; died Peftiscola, Spain, 1422 or 1423. A cardinal-deacon, he assisted at the election of Urban VI, but later joined the French cardinals when they elected the antipope Robert of Geneva (Clement VII), falsely claiming that Urban's election had been secured under pressure from the Roman people. The anti-pope sent him as legate to the kingdoms of Castile, Aragon, Navarre, and Portugal, and later to France, Scotland, Belgium, England, and Ireland, in order to gain favor for the Avignon party. When Robert died Pedro de Luna became a priest, was consecrated bishop, and elected pope by the Avignon faction. In 1407 he and Pope Gregory XII decided to meet at Savona and settle the schism but the latter failed to put in an appearance. The kingdoms now began to turn against the antipope, who, backed by Scotland, Aragon, Castile, and Sicily, refused to accept the sentence of deposition from the Council of Pisa, 1409, insisting that a council was not superior to a pope. The council made matters worse by electing another antipope, Pietro Philarghi (Alexander V), on whose death in the following year they elected Baldassare Cossa (John XXIII). The latter, forced by Sigismund, King of the Romans, convened the Council of Constance. The council met, received the submission of Cossa and the abdication by proxy of Gregory XII, but Pedro de Luna fled to Spain still asserting his claim to the see. His action proved him a schismatic and the council deposed him, 1417, but he died unsubmissive. At the time of the schism half of Europe believed Pedro de Luna to be the legitimate pontiff and his claims were vigorously supported by Saint Vincent Ferrer.
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Entry for 'Benedict Xiii, Anti-Pope'. 1910 New Catholic Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ncd/b/benedict-xiii-anti-pope.html. 1910.
