The man stood out to guards because his purple sash was really a scarf and he was wearing a fedora hat.

Ralph Napierski was simply using the wrong head gear.
Ralph Napierski was simply using the wrong head gear.

A false bishop managed to hoodwink senior cardinals gathered at the Vatican to discuss arrangements for the election of the next Pope.

German born Ralph Napierski was pictured with senior clerics as they arrived for the start of the College of Cardinals meeting – which Britain’s most senior Roman Catholic Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor was also attending.

Mr Napierski was seen shaking hands with unsuspecting Cardinal Sergio Sebiastiana outside the Vatican’s Pope Paul VI hall, with several other priests in his entourage who were also thought to be bogus.

Alert Swiss Guards rumbled him because his vestments were wrong and because they noticed his purple sash was really a scarf and he was also wearing an odd looking fedora hat.

Source: News.sky.com

My comment:

The dress code in the Vatican is strict. So an “old looking fedora hat” would certainly not do.

The Pope that resigned, used a lot of different hats.

Why did they not stop him earlier?

The Pope as santa.
The Pope as santa.
Not sure if this kind of hat should be used by men.
Not sure if this kind of hat should be used by men.
The Pope as a Mexican gangster.
The Pope as a Mexican gangster.
The Pope ready for a Mexican party.
The Pope ready for a Mexican party.

It look like the former Pope was following this saying: “Wherever I lay my hat, that’s my home”.

Written by Ivar