Last Pope Prophecy Of Saint Malachi

[NobodySpecial268]

A curious thing, to my mind anyway. So I thought I would post it here. This concerns the prophecy of Saint Malachi, who in the eleventh century gave a list of popes until the last. The last is the 112th pope which, many people say, was the late Pope Francis

From Wikipedia:

Peter the Roman, who will pasture his sheep in many tribulations, and when these things are finished, the city of seven hills [i.e. Rome] will be destroyed, and the dreadful judge will judge his people. The End.

Many analyses of the prophecy note that it is open to the interpretation that additional popes would come between the "glory of the olive" and Peter the Roman. Popular speculation by proponents of the prophecy attach this prediction to Benedict XVI's successor.[1] After Francis's election as pope, proponents in internet forums tried to link him to the prophecy. Theories include a connection with his namesake Francis of Assisi, whose father was named Pietro (Peter), and that he is of Italian descent.

Source: Wikipedia Prophecy of the Popes

With the recent election of a new pope, this seems to throw a spanner in Saint Malachy's prophecy.  If I recall correctly Pope Francis was the 112th pope. The recent Election of Pope Leo gives us 113, and please correct me if I am in error.

What got my attention is a post by Donald Trump with an AI generated photo of himsef dressed as a pope.  This was after the death of Pope Francis and before the enclave to elect the new pope.

From Sky News Saturday 3 May 2025:

Donald Trump has posted an AI-generated image of himself dressed in papal regalia on his Truth Social platform - just 11 days after the death of Pope Francis.

   

Uploaded onto his account early on Saturday morning, it shows the US president with a large gold cross on a chain around his neck.

From there, it was published, without comment or explanation, on the White House X and Instagram accounts.
Now,
The conclave to select a new pontiff will begin on 7 May after the death of Francis, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church.

Source: Sky News - Trump posts AI image of himself as pope on Truth Social

Pope Leo is surprisingly; an American pope. - What are the chances?

I have no idea what the Cardinals do when in conclave, but hypothetically speaking, if there were a detail that made the election technically void, then Francis would be the last pope in actual fact, and Saint Malachi's prophecy would still be intact.

Just thinking out loud . . .

[Michigan Swampbuck]

All the cardinals know that prophecy, so I imagine they wouldn't pick a Peter, or the new pope wouldn't call himself Peter either. Not sure how such actions would, or could, affect the outcome of the prophecy of Saint Malachi. With sainthood, you'd think God would have delivered a solid prophecy to him.

[NobodySpecial268]

All the cardinals know that prophecy, so I imagine they wouldn't pick a Peter, or the new pope wouldn't call himself Peter either. Not sure how such actions would, or could, affect the outcome of the prophecy of Saint Malachi. With sainthood, you'd think God would have delivered a solid prophecy to him.

Yeah, every cardinal would know Malachi's words for sure.

But what gets me is the timeline: Pope passes on --> "Pope Trump" --> American pope.

Quite the coincidence . . .

Trump is also quoted as saying that he would like to become pope in public.

[Nugget]

I found it strange that Trump gave the vatican 14 million dollars right after the pope's passing. There are no coincidences.

[Ksihkehe]

All the cardinals know that prophecy, so I imagine they wouldn't pick a Peter, or the new pope wouldn't call himself Peter either. Not sure how such actions would, or could, affect the outcome of the prophecy of Saint Malachi. With sainthood, you'd think God would have delivered a solid prophecy to him.

Historically I think the church has done some positioning to ensure that their prophecy or miracles were viewed as real, when it suited them. I see no reason why they wouldn't do the opposite to keep the party going. They definitely knew of the prophecy.

I guess if the prophecy is true, there will be some interesting things that we end up seeing in retrospect. Maybe Leo ends up with an asterisk next to his name in the Papal record books. Maybe he'll be discovered to have been taking performance enhancing communion wafers or betting on miracles. Maybe Francis will be retroactively stripped of the title for his soft takes on behavior that is unbecoming of Catholic clergy according to that old book the use.

I'm not a Catholic, but I don't believe many devout Catholics are aligned with the Vatican doctrines and definitely don't think they'd approve of the permissive atmosphere for deviant behavior that the Vatican seems to be championing. I think that many of the people practicing organized religion are just doing it for social reasons and have no real concerns with the goings on of their power structures. I very much doubt that ground level pearl-clutching Catholics would be on board with it if they knew what was going on.

I was half expecting them to pick a very liberal candidate so that the Catholic Church could finish their merge with the most powerful western religion, statist liberal authoritarianism. Francis didn't have enough gas in the tank to see it through, but there isn't much coming out of Chicago that isn't corrupt. Maybe Leo is the man for the job.

I don't really have a problem with the Catholic Church disappearing, but it will create a much bigger power vacuum than many people think and what fills that vacuum may not be any better than what was there to begin with.

[Nugget]

I wonder how the vatican's financial troubles will affect the church going forward. It looks like an unsurmountable problem from my untrained eyes...

Vatican Financial Troubles
The Vatican is indeed facing significant financial difficulties, including a structural budget deficit and a substantial pension fund shortfall. Pope Leo XIV, who has a degree in mathematics, is tasked with addressing these issues, which have been ongoing for years and were only partially addressed by his predecessor, Pope Francis.

Key Financial Challenges:
Structural Budget Deficit: The Vatican has been running a structural budget deficit for years, with little progress in addressing the underlying issues despite reforms initiated by Pope Francis
[3].
Pension Fund Shortfall: The Vatican’s pension fund has a significant deficit, estimated at 631 million euros ($717m) as of 2022, and is expected to be unable to meet its obligations in the near future.
Operational Costs: Rising operational costs, including salaries, security, and building upkeep, are contributing to the financial strain.
Past Scandals: The Vatican has been embroiled in several financial scandals, including the London property deal and the collapse of Banco Ambrosiano, which have eroded public trust and financial stability.
Efforts to Address the Issues:
Reforms by Pope Francis: Pope Francis initiated several reforms, including the creation of the Council for the Economy, the Secretariat for the Economy, and the Office of the Auditor General, but these efforts have stalled in recent years
[3].
Pope Leo XIV’s Role: Pope Leo XIV is expected to revitalize these reforms, reign in spending, and find new sources of income to stabilize the Vatican’s finances.
The situation is urgent, and the new pope has a limited window to implement effective changes and prevent further financial decline.

[NobodySpecial268]

I found it strange that Trump gave the vatican 14 million dollars right after the pope's passing. There are no coincidences.

Did he really . . .

Well now, might that invalidate the papal selection? At least ethically or mortally? A 'minor technicality', - one would think so.

I don't know the instructions the cardinals get.

[Ksihkehe]

ethically or mortally

Catholic Church... ethically or morally...



They're about as moral and ethical as the people in the UK that covered up child rape gangs to protect their political ideology. Not even to protect specific people in their party, just the party name. They jailed people for telling the truth and let rape gangs operate for years to protect their refugee agenda. They could just, say, not let unvetted criminal pedophiles remain in the country. Instead they chose to cover up the crimes, gaslight the public, and throw people in jail, while little girls were passed around like property.

As I mentioned above, I'm surprised the chosen pope wasn't far more liberal. They have far more in common with the liberal authoritarians running European countries than they do with rank and files Catholics.

[NobodySpecial268]

Catholic Church... ethically or morally...



They're about as moral and ethical as the people in the UK that covered up child rape gangs to protect their political ideology. Not even to protect specific people in their party, just the party name. They jailed people for telling the truth and let rape gangs operate for years to protect their refugee agenda. They could just, say, not let unvetted criminal pedophiles remain in the country. Instead they chose to cover up the crimes, gaslight the public, and throw people in jail, while little girls were passed around like property.

As I mentioned above, I'm surprised the chosen pope wasn't far more liberal. They have far more in common with the liberal authoritarians running European countries than they do with rank and files Catholics.

Well yes, I do realise the stark contradiction. All other crimes aside, I would think the cardinals have to operate within defined rules according to church law. So just like a criminal case in the courts, a minor mistake annuls the court case and the judge has to dismiss. I doubt the cardinals pluck a name out of a hat.

Nugget's post about a 14 million US$ raises eyebrows certainly, the timing is suspicious.

If the election of a president breaks constitutional law, then the new president is illegitimate, and therefore not a real president at all. He has no legal standing.

----------------------------------------------

ETA: (smile) USAID and the CIA have a long history of deciding which government rules in other countries, and in America too. The terms "color revolution" and "maiden" come to mind.

[NobodySpecial268]

Curious, I looked up the law on electing a new pope. The procedure comes under something called Code of Canon Law apparently.

Upon the altar in the Sistine Chapel is placed a receptacle covered with a plate. In order of precedence, each Cardinal elector holds his ballot so it is visible and carries it to the altar. When in front of the altar, he swears, “I call as my witness Christ the Lord who will be my judge, that my vote is given to the one who before God I think should be elected.” He then places it on the plate, deposits the ballot into the receptacle, bows to the altar, and returns to his place.

Source: Catholic Straight Answers - How Is A Pope Elected

I guess the phrase “I call as my witness Christ the Lord who will be my judge, that my vote is given to the one who before God I think should be elected.” is the important part. Outside influence would perhaps be a problem here.


In looking that up, I found an odd account of how a pope is elected. So I will post the link here. More for the curiosity than anything else. The article includes the legend of Pope Joan, a woman is said to have snuck past the scrutinising process.

Despite what you may have seen in the recent TV series The Borgias, it is not necessary to check the masculinity of the Pope. It is a commonly held myth that, following election, the Pope-elect would be made to sit in a chair with a hole cut in the seat. There would then be a visual or manual examination of the Pope-elects genitalia. If the examiner was convinced that the new Pope was a man he was supposed to have shouted “Testiculos habit et bene pendents!” “He has testicles, and they hang well!”

Unfortunately there is no good historical evidence that such a ceremony has ever taken place. The necessity of the test seems to rest on the legendary figure of Pope Joan; a woman supposed to have concealed her femininity and climbed the ladder of church power until she became the Pope. Since there is no good evidence for Pope Joan it seems unlikely that there would be need for such an intimate scrutiny.

Source: 10 Steps in Electing a Pope.