Prophecy of the Popes

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The Prophecy of the Popes according to Saint Malachy is a list of 112 short phrases in Latin. They purport to describe each of the Roman Catholic popes (along with a few anti-popes), beginning with Pope Celestine II (elected in 1143) and concluding with a future pope described in the prophecy as "Peter the Roman," whose pontificate will end in the destruction of the city of Jerusalem or Rome and the Last Judgement.

Provenance

The prophecy was first published in 1595 by Arnold de Wyon, a Benedictine historian, as part of his book Lignum Vitæ. Wyon attributed the list to Saint Malachy, a 12the-century bishop of Armagh in Ireland. According to the traditional account, in 1139, Malachy was summoned to Rome by Pope Innocent II. While in Rome, Malachy purportedly experienced a vision of future popes, which he recorded as a sequence of cryptic phrases. This manuscript was then deposited in the Roman Archive, and thereafter forgotten about until its rediscovery in 1590.

On the other hand, Bernard of Clairvaux's biography of Malachy makes no mention of the prophecy, nor is it mentioned in any record prior to its 1595 publication. This has led to the understandable belief of many, including the most recent editions of the Catholic Encyclopedia, that the prophecy is a late 16th century forgery. Some have suggested they were created by Nostradamus and credited to Saint Malachy so the purported seer would not be blamed for the destruction of the papacy. Supporters, such as author John Hogue, who wrote a popular book entitled The Last Pope about the claims, generally argue that even if the author of the prophecies may be uncertain, the predictions made are still valid.

Scepticism and authenticity

Those who doubt the prophecy's authenticity claim that the prophecy's mottoes fit the earlier popes much better than they do those elected after the document's first publication. Such similarities as exist between the later popes and their mottoes can be seen as a product of coincidence and the mottoes' vagueness; that is to say, these later prophecies are susceptible to a confirmation bias.

For example, the association of John Paul II with the motto De labore Solis ("the Sun's labor"), due to his birth and funeral both occurring at times of solar eclipse ("labores solis"), can be seen as a statistically likely post-diction, as eclipses occur two or more times each year. As the motto does not suggest which events of the pope's life might coincide with an eclipse, the odds of some co-incidence are relatively high; and the date of the pope's funeral (rather than, say, his death) might be considered an unlikely choice of date if it were not for the fact that it fit the interpretation.

Likewise, when Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger chose the name Benedict XVI, this was seen by some as the fulfilment the prophecy Gloria Olivae, since it is claimed that the olive branch is sometimes used as a symbol of St. Benedict. However, prior to his election there were numerous speculations in the media as to what could be considered as "fulfillment of the prophecy". For example, it was said that any pope from the Benedictine Order; or any Latin American pope (with olive complexion); or any black pope (coinciding with St. Benedict the Black); or any pope with links to Judaism would also fulfill the prophecy, giving a broad array of possibilities. It has also been noted that the choice of name, while interesting for those who predicted the choice of the name, was not statistically unlikely, as papal names are generally chosen from a fairly limited set of names, from which Benedict was chosen by 6% of past popes. (The only more popular papal name is John, chosen by 8% of popes.) Media comments on Pope Benedict XVI's choice of name have suggested that he seeks to emulate Pope Benedict XV's legacy of diplomacy and theological conservatism.

Another theory notes that the prophecy has been public knowledge since 1590; and, as such, it would be possible to make a purposeful effort to fulfill the prophecy, by electing someone who matches the prophecy well or causing an event that helps the pope match the prophecy. It is possible, though perhaps unlikely, that Cardinal Ratzinger picked the name Benedict deliberately to fulfill the prophecy.

Separate doubts are raised about the last entry, describing Petrus Romanus. Some claim that this was first recorded sometime after 1820 and so is often considered not to be part of the original prophecy.

Interpretation

Interpretation of the mottos has generally relied on finding correspondences between the mottos and the popes' birthplaces, their personal arms, and the events of their pontificates. For example, the first motto, Ex castro Tiberis (From a castle on the Tiber), fits Pope Celestine II's birthplace in Città di Castello, on the Tiber. Pope Clement XIII, referred to in the prophecy Rosa Umbriae, the rose of Umbria, who is stated to have used a rose "as his personal emblem" (his coat of arms does not include one, however, nor was he from Umbria nor had any connection with the region). The technique of word play was evident in instances where interpreters find a phrase fitting more than one explanations.

In recent times, some interpreters of prophetic literature have drawn attention to the prophecies, both because of their success in finding connections between the prophecies and recent popes, and because of the prophecies' imminent conclusion. Interpretations made before the elections of recent popes have turned out not to predict their papacies accurately. Yet, in instances where pre-election interpretation had shown fitting connections to elected popes, the Prophecy falls victim to sceptics who claim such "success" is the product of vagueness and postdiction.

Popes and corresponding mottos

The Prophecies of St Malachy

Contemporary Popes and the Prophecy

Pope Pius X (Ignis ardens)

The motto means "ardent" or "burning fire". The pope was known for his great personal piety and strong devotion to the church, advocating reforms such as the codification of Canon law, daily communion and the Gregorian chant in the Catholic liturgy.

Pope Benedict XV (Religio depopulata)

The motto means "religion laid waste". During Pope Benedict XV's reign, two significant events occurred: World War I, which killed 15 million people in Europe, and the October Revolution in Russia, which established the atheist Soviet Union.

Pope Pius XI (Fides intrepida)

The motto means "intrepid faith". This pope released the encyclical Mit Brennender Sorge which condemned Nazi racism and also signed agreements with fascist Italy which, among other things, gave the Vatican sovereignty, established the pope as head of state, and added 700 million lire to the church coffers.

Pope Pius XII (Pastor angelicus)

The motto means "an angelic shepherd". This pope was known to be very mystical, and it was believed that he received visions. His writings added greatly to understanding of Catholic beliefs and church doctrine.

Pope John XXIII (Pastor et Nauta)

Prior to his election he was patriarch of Venice, which is a maritime city, famous for its waterways and gondolas.

According to Peter Bander in The Prophecies of Malachy (TAN Books and Publisher, 1969) during the conclave which was to elect John XXIII, a certain Cardinal from the United States, (Cardinal Spellman of New York) evidently having taken Malachy's forecast that the next pope would be "pastor and mariner" literally, rented a boat, filled it with sheep and sailed up and down the Tiber.

The anti-pope Pius XIII of the true Catholic Church has also claimed to be Pastor et Nauta, as their group believes that his last valid predecessor was Pius XII. He has used justifications including his residence in the United States, which is across the Atlantic Ocean from Rome.

Pope Paul VI (Flos florum)

Pope Paul VI, who reigned from 1963"‘1978, is described in the prophecies as Flos florum (flower of flowers). His personal arms bore three fleurs-de-lis, the well-used symbol in flags and heraldry used to represent the French monarchy. "Fleur-de-lis" literally means "flower of lily". However, this disregards all the other papal arms that had flowers on them as well.

Pope John Paul I (De medietate Lunae)

De medietate Lunae translates to "of the half-moon". It could also be interpreted as de media aetate lunae, meaning of the average age of the moon. Albino Luciani, who later became Pope John Paul I, was born in Canale d'Agordo, diocese of Belluno (the name is similar to bella luna, beautiful moon). He was elected on 26 August 1978, the day after the moon reached its last quarter, and reigned for 33 days, approximately five days longer than a lunar cycle. He died the day before the new moon. However, a much simpler explanation might be that he was born on the day of the half moon: on 17 October 1912, the moon was in its first quarter. Others point to his name before becoming pope, Albino Luciani: Albino is related to albus, white, and Luciani, although derived in fact from Lucius, looks like it might be from lux, lucis, light; whence "white light".

Pope John Paul II (De labore Solis)

The prophetic motto corresponding to Pope John Paul II is De labore Solis, which literally means "Of the labour of the sun", but "labores solis" ("travails of the sun") is a not uncommon metaphor used to mean solar eclipse. Karol Wojtyla, who later became Pope John Paul II was born on 18 May 1920 during a partial solar eclipse (over the Indian Ocean), and buried on 8 April 2005, the day of a rare "hybrid" eclipse (over the south-western Pacific and South America). He might also be seen to be the fruit of the intercession of the Woman Clothed with the Sun labouring in Revelation 12 (because of his devotion to the Virgin Mary).

It has also been suggested that the associated Latin phrase could also be an anagram for de borealis sol, of the northern sun, being a luminary coming from Poland to the north; this would be very ungrammatical Latin, however. Another interpretation points simply to the sun rising in the east and his being the first Pope from Eastern Europe. Yet another is that he was the first Pope to go around the world, as the Sun seems to do. A further theory is that the combination of labore and solis cryptically refers to "the sun of the workers", i.e., the star of communism, with John Paul being the only pope to have spent much of his life under a communist regime.

During World War II Pope John Paul II worked in a quarry (laboring in the sunlight).

Pope Benedict XVI (Gloria Olivae)

Gloria Olivae, glory of the olive, is the next phrase following De labore Solis. Prior to the papal conclave, this motto led to speculation that the next pontiff would be from the Order of Saint Benedict, whose symbols include the olive branch. Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, elected in April 2005, is not a Benedictine, but did choose Benedict XVI as his regnal name, which might be regarded as a fulfillment of this prophecy.

It must be noted that, possibly thanks to the Prophecy, the betting site PaddyPower accurately predicted that Benedict would have the highest probability of being the future papal name.

Yet there can also be a different meaning. Pope Benedict XVI had his birthday on 16 April and on that day is celebrated the feast of Saint Benedict Joseph Labre (26 March 1748 - 16 April 1783), also known as the Holy Pilgrim. The name Joseph links the Pope with St. Benedict Labre; the name Benedict links them with the great St. Benedict; and St. Benedict is distantly connected to the Olivetans: while it is frequently stated that the Order of St Benedict is also known as that of the Olivetans, this is not true: the Olivetans are a very small sub-order of Benedictines (currently something like a hundred members); while all Olivetans are Benedictines, almost no Benedictines are Olivetans.

Yet another possible interpretation might be that, like his predecessor "” who spoke of the Church needing to 'breathe with both lungs' again "” Pope Benedict XVI has a special desire to reunite the eastern orthodox churches, separated since 1054, with the Roman Church. The olive can of course be taken as a symbol of Greece, and hence the Greek Orthodox Church (and "” by extension "” the Russian Orthodox Church which grew out of it). If indeed it turns out that reunion with the 'olive' churches is achieved during Benedict's pontificate (the last time, if only briefly, was at the Council of Florence, the seventeenth Ecumenical Council, 1438"‘1445), it would truly be a glorious achievement worthy of St Malachy's phrase, 'Gloria Olivae'.

Another interpretation was that Gloria Olivae would promote world peace, as symbolised by the olive branch. In a general audience on 27 April 2005, Benedict XVI explained that he chose his regnal name as a link to Benedict XV, Religio depopulata, and that "In his footsteps I place my ministry, in the service of reconciliation and harmony between peoples, profoundly convinced that the great good of peace is above all a gift of God, a fragile and precious gift to be invoked, safeguarded and constructed, day after day and with everyone's contribution".

There was a coincidence of two events, both connected to the olive, but unrelated to each other, with the 2005 Conclave: On April 18, a Turkish presidential candidate won the northern Cyprus elections favouring re-unification peace talks of the two sectors; the flag of Cyprus has two inter-locking olive branches in it. Secondly, on April 20, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was forced to resign as a result of pressure from the leftist opposition called l'Ulivo ("The Olive Tree").

Clemente Domínguez y Gómez, the late self-proclaimed Pope of the Palmarian Catholic Church also used to claim that he was the glory of the olive.

Petrus Romanus

The longest and final motto reads, "In persecutione extrema S.R.E. sedebit Petrus Romanus, qui pascet oues in multis tribulationibus: quibus transactis ciuitas septicollis diruetur, & Iudex trem?dus iudicabit populum suum. Finis." (During the final persecution, the seat of the Holy Roman Church will be occupied by Peter the Roman, who will feed the sheep in many tribulations, after which the seven-hilled city will be destroyed, and the terrible Judge will judge his people. The End.)

Two men claiming to be Pope Peter II have emerged in recent years, probably inspired by this motto.

There are several interpretations regarding the last Popes listed by St. Malachy taken by those who believe the prophecies:

• Regarding whether additional Popes, not listed by St. Malachy occur between Gloria Olivae and Petrus Romanus the following differing views are held:
  1. Gloria Olivae is immediately followed by Petrus Romanus.
  2. Because no number is assigned to Petrus Romanus, he and Gloria Olivae might be one and the same pope.
  3. Because no number is assigned to Petrus Romanus, any number of popes could intervene between these two popes.

• Regarding whether the Papacy ends with Petrus Romanus, the following differing views are held:
  1. Petrus Romanus will be the final Pope. The end of his papacy will mark either the end of the papacy, the end of the Roman Catholic Church, and/or the end of this world (Apocalypse | End of the world (religion) | Armageddon | Eschatology).
  2. There will be additional Popes following Petrus Romanus, about which Malachy did not write. There is also the possibility that these additional popes might be considered antipopes, which could justify their omission in St. Malachy's eyes.

According to some sources, this final motto was not a part of the original prophecy but was added in the early 19th century by a publisher. Some who agree with this hold the view that Gloria Olivae is therefore the final pope.

See also

• List of popes
• Myths and legends surrounding the Papacy

External links

• List of Popes and their corresponding mottos
• Discussion of the Prophecy of the Popes
• General Audience: Pope tells why he chose the name of Benedict

References

Hogue, John (2000). The Last Pope. Element. ISBN 1-86-204732-4. Bander, Peter (1969). The Prophecies of St. Malachy. TAN Books and Publishers, Inc. ISBN 0-8189-0189-6.

Source: en.wikipedia.org
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