As everybody knows, when searching for something on the internet, the first thing you encounter is usually a link to a Wikipedia page. Nowadays, Wikipedia (at least in the larger languages) is often a great starting point for learning more about something, though, as with everything else, articles should not be read uncritically.
Throughout my years investigating and writing about traditionalist/independent Catholicism and alternative popes, I have seen the relevant pages develop considerably. Only a few years ago, the English article on the Palmarian Church was sketchy, sensationalist, and filled with errors. I remember trying to change the assertion that the Palmarians had canonized Hitler, but to no avail. For some reason, somebody always reverted my edits, and in the end I gave up. Today (2026), it is entirely different. The article on the Palmarian Church is reliable and mainly based on primary sources, serious journalism, and recent scholarship, including my own texts.
The same is true of the Wikipedia article on “Antipopes”, which now includes a detailed section on what I call alternative popes, based mainly on my decade-long research. At least some of the alternative popes and their churches also have their own Wikipedia pages, and many of them are trustworthy.
I am happy to have contributed to this development, even though I did not write any part of the articles myself. Thus, I am grateful to the people who have taken the time to improve the texts dramatically. As Wikipedia plays an important role in building our knowledge about virtually everything, the articles must be as reliable as possible. They might not be the best sources for academic writing, but they are important for everyday knowledge and as an entry point to more specialized texts.
Still, when searching for information about smaller, newer, and often controversial religious groups, it is also a good idea to read the entries in the web encyclopedia developed by the World Religions and Spirituality Project (WRSP). There, you will find well-researched introductions to a multitude of religious groups, written by specialized scholars. It is an easy and great way to gain solid knowledge of all things religious.
Magnus Lundberg 