04/20/05
In my books such as Let My People Go I
have speculated that the Roman Catholic Papacy will fall by 2033 AD and that
the “millennium” prophesied in the book of Revelation will begin then. While that is simply a guess on my part
based upon a certain interpretation of Biblical data, it has recently come to
my attention that there may be a number of Catholics that also think the days
of the Roman Pontiff are numbered, based upon a prophecy of the line of popes
attributed to Malachy. The information
about Malachy’s alleged prophecy can be read at:
http://www.catholic-pages.com/grabbag/malachy.asp
Here are excerpts from that webpage:
“The most famous and best known prophecies about the popes are those attributed to St. Malachy. In 1139 he went to Rome to give an account of the affairs of his diocese to the pope, Innocent II, who promised him two palliums for the metropolitan Sees of Armagh and Cashel. While at Rome, he received (according to the Abbé Cucherat) the strange vision of the future wherein was unfolded before his mind the long list of illustrious pontiffs who were to rule the Church until the end of time. The same author tells us that St. Malachy gave his manuscript to Innocent II to console him in the midst of his tribulations, and that the document remained unknown in the Roman Archives until its discovery in 1590 (Cucherat, "Proph. de la succession des papes", ch. xv)… These short prophetical announcements, in number 112, indicate some noticeable trait of all future popes from Celestine II, who was elected in the year 1130, until the end of the world. They are enunciated under mystical titles.”
According to this numerical scheme of Malachy, the newly installed Pope Benedict XVI is the next to last of the 112 popes. He is there said to be the Glory of the Olives. This may allude to efforts by the Pontiff to reconcile with the other religions. Or it may allude to papal efforts to lead the world from Jerusalem. As Anti-Christ, the Papacy seeks to stand in the place of Christ. Accordingly, it would make since for a Pontiff to try to fulfill this prophecy concerning the Christ:
“Behold, a day is coming for the LORD when the spoil taken
from you will be divided among you. For I will gather all the nations against
Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the
women ravished and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not
be cut off from the city. Then the LORD will go forth and fight against those
nations, as when He fights on a day of battle. In that day His feet will stand
on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the
Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large
valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other
half toward the south.” – Zechariah 14:1-4
During the First Advent, Jesus Himself entered Jerusalem in His triumphal entry from the Mount of Olives.
“Malachy’s”
prophecy reads thus about the 112th pope: “In extreme persecution, the seat of the Holy Roman Church will be
occupied by Peter the Roman, who will feed the sheep through many tribulations,
at the term of which the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the
formidable Judge will judge his people. The End.”
This may all be coincidence. But it is something worth pondering, whether
we are in the final years of the life of the Papacy. Let’s hope so. But if
that is the case, we should expect some rough years ahead of us before the
millennial restoration.