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Sunday, April 3, 2005 6:01 p.m. EDT Saint's Prophecy: Only Two Popes Remain
When the cardinals of the world pick John Paul II's successor, they may well be choosing the next-to-last pope.
The pope who then follows this choice in the Chair of St. Peter will be the last pope, and after his reign Rome will be destroyed.
Such has been the prophecy of St. Malachy, an Irish bishop who at his death in 1148 A.D. was discovered to have left behind a prophetic list of all future popes beginning with Pope Celestine II, whose papacy began in 1143 A.D.
Malachy included a single line in Latin identifying a characteristic of each pope.
Historians say Malachy's prediction – wherein he listed just 112 popes – has been amazingly accurate.
According to his list, there are just two more popes after the late John Paul II.
Here are the seven last popes as identified from St. Malachy's list:
106. Pius XII 1939 - 1958
Eugenio Pacelli
Pastor Angelicus
Translated: An Angelic Shepherd
____________________________________ 107. John XXIII 1968 - 1963
Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli
Pastor Et Natua
Translated: Pastor and Mariner
____________________________________ 108. Paul VI 1963 - 1978
Giovanni Battista Montini
Translated: Flower of Flowers
____________________________________ 109. John Paul I 1978 - 1978
Albino Luciani
De Medietate Lunae
Translated: Of the Half Moon
____________________________________ 110. John Paul II 1978 - 2005
Karol Jozef Wojtyla
De Labore Solis
Translated: From the Toil of the Sun
____________________________________ 111. The next pope
"Gloria Olivae"
Translated: The Glory of the Olive
____________________________________ 112. The last pope!
"Petrus Romanus"
Translated: Peter the Roman
____________________________________
Wrote St. Malachy of the last 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 the people. The End."
According to his biographer St. Bernard of Clairvaux, in his book "Life of Saint Malachy," the saint was known to have the gift of prophesy and had even predicted the exact day and hour of his own death. Saint Malachy was canonized in 1190 by Pope Clement III.
While in Rome in 1139, Saint Malachy is said to have gone into a trance and received a vision in which he foresaw all the popes from the death of Innocent II until the end of time.
Afterward he wrote a few words about each pope and gave the manuscript to Pope Innocent II, who is said to have deposited it in Vatican Archives, where it lay forgotten until it was discovered in 1590 and published. At the time, some questioned its authenticity and it has been the subject of debate ever since.
The manuscript contains 112 prophecies, which scholars have matched with each of the 110 popes and anti-popes since Innocent II .
Here are the prophecies for the most recent popes:
Paul VI. The words of the 108th prophecy are "Flos Florum" (Flower of Flowers). The 108th pope after Innocent II was Paul VI (1963-78). His coat of arms included three fleurs-de-lis (iris blossoms).
John Paul I. The 109th is "De Medietate Lunae" (Of the Half Moon). The corresponding pope was John Paul I (1978-78), who was born in the diocese of Belluno (beautiful moon) and was baptized Albino Luciani (white light). He became pope on August 26, 1978, when the moon appeared exactly half full. It was in its waning phase. He died the following month, soon after an eclipse of the moon.
John Paul II. The 110th is "De Labore Solis" (Of the Solar Eclipse, or From the Toil of the Sun). The corresponding pope was John Paul II (1978-2005). John Paul II was born on May 8, 1920 during an eclipse of the sun. Like the sun, he came out of the East (Poland). Like the sun, he visited countries all around the globe. Today the final two prophecies are yet to be fulfilled:
The 111th prophecy is "Gloria Olivae" (The Glory of the Olive). The meaning of the olive is unclear. The Order of Saint Benedict – not St. Malachy – has claimed that this pope will come from its ranks and Saint Benedict himself prophesied that before the end of the world his Order, known also as the Olivetans, will triumphantly lead the Catholic Church in its final fight against evil.
The 112th prophecy says, "In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church there will reign Petrus Romanus (Peter the Roman), who will feed his flock amid many tribulations; after which the seven-hilled city will be destroyed and the dreadful Judge will judge the people.
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The following treatise was taken from the Catholic Encyclopedia published in 1911. Newer editions do not go to this detail pertaining to the saint. Article from the internet a couple of years ago, author unknown.
Prophecies of St Malachy---Concerning the Popes
The most famous and best known prophecies about the popes are those attributed to Saint 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 Abbe 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 the Saint Malachy gave his MS. to Innocent II to console him in the midst of his tribulations, and the document remained unknown in the Roman Archives until its discovery in 1590 ( Cucherat, "Proph. de la succession des papes" ). They were first published by Arnold de Wyon, and ever since there has been much discussion as to whether they are genuine predictions of St. Malachy or forgeries. The silence of 400 years on the part of so many learned authors who had written about the popes, and the silence of St. Bernard especially, who wrote the " Life Of St. Malachy ", is strong argument against their authenticity, but it is not conclusive if we adopt Cucherat's theory that they were hidden in the Archives during those 400 years.
These short prophetical announcements in number 112, indicate some noticeable trait of all the future popes from Celestine II, who was elected in the year 1130, until the end of the world. They are enunciated under the mystical titles. Those who have undertaken to interpret and explain these symbolic prophecies have discovering some trait, allusion, point or similitude in their application to the individual popes, either as to their country, name, their coat of arms or insignia, their birth place, their talent or learning, the title of their cardinalate, the dignities which they held etc. For example, the prophecy concerning Urban VIII is Lilium et rosa ( the lily and the rose ); he was a native of Florence and on the arms of Florence figured a fleur-de-lis; he had three bees emblazoned on his escutcheon, and the bees gather honey from the lilies and roses.
Again the name accords often with some remarkable or rare circumstances in the pope's career: thus Peregrinus apostilicus ( pilgrim pope ), which designates Pius VI, appears to be verified by his journey when pope into Germany, by his long career as pope, and by his expatriation from Rome at the end of his pontificate. Those who have lived and followed the course of events in an intelligent manner during the pontificates of Pius IX, Leo XIII, and Pius X cannot fail to be impressed with the titles given to each by the prophecies of St. Malachy and their wonderful appropriateness: Crux de cruce ( Cross from a cross ) Pius IX; Lumen in Caelo ( Light in the Sky ) Leo XIII; Ignis argens ( Burning Fire ) Pius X. There is something more than coincidence in the designations given to these three popes so many hundred of years before their time. We need have recourse either to the family names, armorial bearings or cardinalitial titles to see the fitness of their designations as given in the prophecies. The afflictions and crosses of Pius IX were more than fell to the lot of his predecessors; and the more aggravating of these crosses were brought on by the House of Savoy whose emblem was a cross. Leo XIII was a veritable luminary of the papacy. The present pope (1911) is truly a burning fire of zeal for the restoration of all things in Christ.
The latter of these prophecies concerns the end of the world as is as follows, " In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church there will reign Peter the Roman, who will feed his flock amid many tribulations, after which the seven-hilled city will be destroyed and the dreadful Judge will judge the people. The End." It has been noticed concerning Petrus Romanus, who according to St. Malachy's list is to be the last pope, that the prophecy does not say that no popes shall intervene between him and his predecessor designated Gloria Olivae . It merely says he is to be the last, so that we may suppose as many popes as please before " Peter The Roman". Corneius a Lapide refers to this prophecy in his commentary " On the Gospel of St. John " and "On the Apocalypse" and he endeavors to calculate according to it the remaining years of time.
So Ends the Treatise According to St Malachy's list, Pope John Paul II is the third to the last pope. He is referred to as "ab labore solis", from the labor of the sun. Therefore, the remaining popes are:
ab labore solis (current Pope, John Paul II) gloria olivae (second to last pope) petrus romanus (Peter the Roman would be the last pope)