St. Malachy's Prophecy of Popes and Antipopes. Thursday 13 June, 2013 Feast of St. Anthony of Padua, CD

St. Malachy's Prophecy of Popes and Antipopes

 Bro. Michael Dimond     ( www.vaticancatholic.com )

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"One of the most well known predictions in Catholic history is the prophecy of the Popes and Antipopes that is attributed to St. Malachy.

St. Malachy was a Catholic Bishop born in 1094 in Ireland.   He died in the presence of his good friend, St. Bernard in 1148.   St. Bernard said that St. Malachy foretold the day and hour of his own death.    St. Malachy was canonized in 1190.

In a reading for his feast day  
mentions that he was blessed with the gift of prophecy.



St. Malachy

According to the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia, under the title of Prophecy, it says that St. Malachy was called to Rome in 1139 by Pope Innocent II.   While in Rome it is reported that St. Malachy experienced a vision of future claimants to the papacy, until the second coming of Jesus Christ.

St. Bernard and St. Malachy

St. Malachy wrote 112 short Latin phrases describing all these future claimants to the Papacy giving titles to both Popes and Antipopes.   The document was then reportedly placed in the Vatican secret archives and wasn't discovered until 1556 by a Vatican Librarian.   The document was first published 39 years later in 1595, by historian Arnold de Wyon, in a book called "Tree of Life."

De Wyon was assisted in his translation of the document by Alfonso Chaconne, a well known scholar of medieval manuscripts.  Chaconne was given the job of authenticating the document and making sure it wasn't a forgery.    After examining the document, Chaconne verified it as authentic.



1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

While God apparently showed St. Malachy the different men, who in the future would claim to be the leaders of the Catholic Church, He did not necessarily reveal to St. Malachy whether these future claimants to the Papacy were good or evil, and He did not reveal to him whether they were true Popes or Antipopes.

St. Malachy was simply shown the men, who until the end of human history, would present themselves to the world as the leaders of the Catholic Church.     Furthermore, as humanity moved closer and closer to the end of the world, God wanted people in the last days to have some idea how close they were to the Second Coming of Christ.



The Vatican - the Papacy

St. Malachy's descriptions of future claimants to the Papacy usually include at least one or more of the following things concerning the claimant: his coat of arms, his families coat of arms, his birth name or birth place, or cities in which he would live during his life.

St. Malachy also described major figures or events that would overshadow the reigns of some of the claimants to the Papacy.

As mentioned earlier, the prophecies of St. Malachy were published for the first time in 1595. 

St. Malachy's list of Popes before 1595

There is a controversy over St. Malachy's pre 1595 predictions.



Many believe that since St. Malachy's list was only publicly available for the first time in 1595, the predictions referring to pre 1595 claimants, constitute no proof of authenticity.    Moreover, some believe that since St. Malachy's prophecy wasn't publicly released until hundreds of years after it was reportedly first made, doubt exists about the entire prophecy.

However, a good response to that objection can be found by considering a very important Biblical manuscript called "Codex Vaticanus."    Codex Vaticanus is considered to be the oldest surviving copy of an almost complete Bible,

St. Malachy's prophecies first published in Lignum Vitae in 1595

It was originally produced in the late 4th century, but its whereabouts were uncertain for more than one thousand years until it was identified in the Vatican Library in the 15th century.  

So, Codex Vaticanus, like St. Malachy's document was discovered at the Vatican after being lost for an extremely long period of time, yet Biblical scholars generally accept Codex Vaticanus as authentic, despite its uncertain whereabouts for more than 1000 years after its original production, a far longer period of time than St. Malachy's document was lost.


St. Malachy's List of Popes before 1595

Nevertheless, since there is controversy over the St. Malachy prophecy before 1595, we will not consider any examples of his predictions that concern Papal claimants before 1595, but only those after 1595.

St. Malachy describes Pope Innocent X as "Joyfulness of the Cross."


Pope Innocent X - [1644 - 1655] 


It is very interesting that Innocent X was finally elected Pope on the feast day of the Exultation of the Cross, after a long and difficult conclave.



St. Malachy describes Pope Pius VI as "Apostolic Wanderer."



Pope Pius VI - [1775 - 1799]

During Pius VI's reign, he travelled to Germany to confer with Emperor Joseph II.   In the last two years of his reign, he was forced by revolutionaries to flee Rome.    After a very difficult journey over the Alps, he died in France.   He was definitely a "Wanderer."


St. Malachy describes Pope Pius VII as "Greedy Eagle."

Pope Pius VII - [1800 - 1823]

This Popes reign was overshadowed by Napoleon whose symbol was an eagle.   Napoleons complete reign as Emperor took place during Pius VII's reign as Pope.   Napoleon and Pius VII were continually in conflict, Napoleon ordering that the Pope comply with his demands.

After Pius VII excommunicated Napoleon, he was kidnapped and imprisoned by Napoleon's officers.   Eventually Napoleon formed an agreement with Pius VII that weighed heavily in his own favour.

Pope Pius IX - [1846 - 1878]

St. Malachy describes Pope Pius IX as "Cross from the Cross."

Pius IX was the last Pope to govern the Papal States.   He ended up a prisoner in the Vatican after the House of Savoy, whose coat of arms is a White Cross, reunited Italy and removed Pius IX from his control of the Papal States.

Pope Leo XIII - [1878 - 1903]

St. Malachy describes Pope Leo XIII as "Light in the Sky."

Pope Leo XIII's coat of arms features a comet in the sky.     Bishops of the Catholic Church create a coat of arms.   Pope Leo XIII was made a bishop on February 19, 1843.   That means that Leo XIII created his coat of arms which featured a comet in the sky, 35 years before he became Pope in 1878.     He was thus identified with a light in the sky long before he became Pope, or knew that he would become Pope.

Coat of arms of Pope Leo XIII

St. Malachy describes Pope Pius X as "Fire Burning."



Pope Pius X - [1903 - 1914]

Pius X's reign saw the Russian/Japaneses war, the Mexican Revolution, and the 1st and 2nd Balkan Wars.     It was also at the end of his reign, that World War I began, which set Europe on fire.

St. Malachy describes Benedict XV as "Religion Laid Waste."



Pope Benedict XV - [1914 - 1922]

Benedict XV reigned during World War I and the Communist Revolution in Russia, which led to millions of Catholics being put to death.     On p. 328, of his 1996 book, "Memoirs ," Mikhail Gorbachev said that the Soviet/Communist State laid waste to religion by carrying out "a wholesale war on religion."


St. Malachy describes Antipope John XXIII as "Pastor and Sailor."


Antipope John XXIII - [1958 - 1963]


During his reign, John XXIII would frequently wear clothing featuring a large sailboat.



St. Malachy describes Antipope Paul VI as "Flower of Flowers."





Antipope Paul VI - [1963 - 1978]

Interestingly, Paul VI happened to have three lily flowers on his coat of arms.






St. Malachy describes Antipope John Paul I as "From the Half
Moon."



John Paul I began his reign on August 26, 1978 when the moon appeared exactly half full.





Antipope John Paul I - [1978 - 1978]

So he literally began his reign from the half moon.    John Paul I also comes from the diocese of Belluno, which means "Beautiful Moon."



St. Malachy describes Antipope John Paul II as "Of the Solar Eclipse."

John Paul II was born on May 18, 1920, the day of a solar eclipse.     On the day of John Paul II's funeral, April 8, 2005, there was also an eclipse of the sun.     This is a striking fulfilment of St. Malachy's prophecy.    In the apparitions of Our Lady of La Salette, France, September 19, 1846, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to two little children and said, "Rome will lose the faith and become the seat of the Antichrist.   The Church will be in eclipse."



Antipope John Paul II - [1978 - 2005]

Our Lady predicted that outside a remnant of Catholics who will preserve the true faith, most people will not see or find real Catholicism because for one reason, the Church will seem to be dominated, blocked out or eclipsed by something.

That something was John Paul II.    He was the eclipse of the Catholic Church.  


Eclipse of the Sun

The predictions made by Our Lady at La Salette and Fatima concerning what would happen to the Catholic Church, are covered in detail in our video "The Third Secret of Fatima."

According to St. Malachy, the final claimant to the Papacy in the history of mankind is described as "Petrus Romanus" - Peter the Roman




Peter the Roman

St. Malachy says about the last claimant, that, "In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church, there will sit Peter the Roman, who will feed the sheep in many tribulations: and when these things are finished, the city of seven hills [ Rome ] will be destroyed, and the dreadful Judge will judge His people. The End."

If St. Malachy's prophecy is correct, Antipope Francis will be the last person in history who will claim to be the Bishop of Rome.

Malachy's prophecy about to be fulfilled

Keep in mind that St. Malachy predicted both Popes and Antipopes, whoever would claim to be the Bishop of Rome.



Destruction of Rome commences

The reason St. Malachy called him Peter the Roman, is because St. Peter, as Bishop of Rome and the first pope, had the name Peter, and St. Malachy calls the last man who will claim to be the Bishop of Rome, by the same name, Peter; and since Francis, according to St. Malachy's list is the final claimant to the Roman See, before the destruction of Rome, he calls him Peter the Roman.

Non-Catholics who believe in St. Malachy's prophecies, yet reject the Roman Catholic Church, should deeply consider what St. Malachy says here.   He refers to the Roman Church which everyone admits is the Roman Catholic Church, and he calls it "Holy."

Malachy's prophecy

If the Roman Catholic Church were a false Church, there would be no way that St. Malachy would describe it as "Holy," and only God could have given St. Malachy the ability to make such incredible accurate predictions about the future.

God would not have given such incredible insights about future events to a believer and leader of a false religion.

What is also extremely interesting is that St. Malachy describes Rome being destroyed by fire at the end of Francis' reign.

Destruction by fire

If correct, this fits perfectly with the prophecies in the Apocalypse about how Babylon/Rome is destroyed at the end of the world. 

These issues are covered in much more detail in our video, "Is theWorld about to End?"   This video contains stunning information about how the final claimants to the papacy fit into Biblical End Times Prophecy.

Rome is destroyed

Therefore, if St. Malachy's predictions are correct, Antipope Francis will be the last claimant to the papacy in history; so if 1000 years from now, we were to look back at the complete list of Popes and Antipopes in history, Francis would be described as the one at the end of the world.

Destroyed by fire

Francis has been described in news headlines, as the "End of the World" Pope, or the man from the end of the world, because Argentina, the country he comes from, is geographically located, some would say, at the end of the world.

Perhaps, in a way of unknowingly fulfilling prophecy, Francis made the following striking statement in his opening words to the people, after his "election" as Antipope, that is, during his very first address to the world from the balcony of St. Peters.

End of the world claimant to the Papacy

Francis said, " The other 'Cardinals' went all the way to the end of the world to find him," and then added, "Here we are."

Translator of Francis' address:  " You know that the duty of the conclave was to give a bishop to Rome.  My fellow 'Cardinals' went and found one, all the way at the end of the world, but, here we are."



"But here we are." -  The End.