Pope Benedict's health failing, St. Malachy's prophecy comes up again

An interesting article, please click on the headline for more

Pope heads into busy Christmas season tired, weak
"Pope Benedict XVI seems worn out. People who have spent time with him recently say they found him weaker than they'd ever seen him, seemingly too tired to engage with what they were saying. He no longer meets individually with visiting bishops. A few weeks ago he started using a moving platform to spare him the long walk down St. Peter's Basilica. Benedict turns 85 in the new year, so a slowdown is only natural. Expected. And given his age and continued rigorous work schedule, it's remarkable he does as much as he does and is in such good health overall: Just this past week he confirmed he would travel to Mexico and Cuba next spring. But a decline has been noted as Benedict prepares for next weekend's grueling Christmas celebrations, which kick off two weeks of intense public appearances. And that raises questions about the future of the papacy given that Benedict himself has said popes should resign if they can't do the job."

Now, this brings up an interesting issue. I am NOT a fan of extra-biblical prophecies. I mean, just look at the hysteria of the Mayan 2012 world-ending prophecy. The bible is the only true standard for testing truth. But there is an interesting prophecy about the Pope that is explained in Jack Kelley's Q&A section of Grace Thru Faith website. Both Q&A's are highlighted with a clickable link.

"Only One More Pope?"
Q. The Bible doesn’t say anything about popes so where do we get the idea that this pope is the 2nd to the last one of the End Times?

A. It’s true that the Bible makes no mention of Popes. The view that the current pope is the next to last one comes from a remarkable extra-Biblical prophecy given by an Irish Catholic Bishop named St. Malachy in 1139 AD. He predicted that a total of 112 men would hold the office of Pope from then till the End of the Age and gave cryptic descriptions of each one that have all been reasonably accurate, lending credibility to the prophecy. The last pope, called Peter the Roman, “will feed his flock amid many tribulations; after which the seven-hilled city (Rome) will be destroyed and the dreadful Judge will judge the people.” Pope Benedict is number 111, next to last on St. Malachy’s list, something that caught the public’s attention around the time the Pope was being selected."

"Verifying Prophecy"
Q. I believe in all the prophesies in the Bible. But what about those extra-biblical predictions like St. Malachy and such? I know in Joel 2:28, God said that there will be people who prophesize. So how do we (Christians) discern which revelation is from God and which isn’t? If I received a vision, how can I be sure that it is from God?

A. Deut. 18:21-22 answers your question. You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the LORD ?” If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the LORD does not take place or come true, that is a message the LORD has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously. Do not be afraid of him. Prophecies from the Lord always come true. Modern day prophecies also have to conform to God’s already revealed word, because He can’t change His mind or contradict Himself. The prophecies of St. Malachy concerning Papal succession are interesting and have historical support for their accuracy. For this reason they bear watching."

Watch, test all things, dispense with the false and hold fast to the good. And with high levels of skepticism and even with one eye shut, holding your nose, read the "The Prophecy of the Popes" by Saint Malachy, of which "The longest and final motto reads in the original Latin:
"In eſecutione extrema S.R.E. ſedebit. Petrus Romanus, qui paſcet oues in multis tribulationibus: quibus tranſactis ciuitas ſepticollis diruetur, & Iudex tremẽdus iudicabit populum ſuum. Finis."

This is usually translated into English as:
"In the extreme persecution of the Holy Roman Church, there will sit [i.e., as bishop]. Peter the Roman, who will pasture his sheep in many tribulations: and when these things are finished, the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the terrible judge will judge his people. The End."

It IS pretty interesting that a guy in some tiny Irish town a thousand years ago made a list of popes that ends at exactly a time when true believers see the biblical prophecies already coming together. Malachy could have listed 100 popes, or 150 popes, but he didn't. The list ends...now. That merits a 'hmmmm' from me.

Compelling, but don't build a doctrine out of it. The currently reported weakness of the Pope and the prospect of installing another one is always interesting because by far the Roman Catholic Church is one of  the largest false religion in the world, with roots that can be directly traced back to the first false religion, Babylon. For that reason alone, the Pope is worth watching, because it is highly likely the Catholic religion will have some role to play when true believers are raptured away. As head of that religion, the Pope will need to send assurances to the billion Catholics left behind. The Pope, whoever he is, will be prominent in the news and on the world stage. There are approximately 1.1 billion Catholics, and 1.5 billion Muslims so the number of false religion adherents left behind will undoubtedly inculcate and perpetuate the Lie. (2 Thess 2:11).

The news article continues about Pope Benedict:

"Fessio recalled a day in the 2010 edition that remains with him: "In the Saturday morning session, the pope looked older and weaker than I had ever seen him before. In fact I remarked to someone that it's the first time I've seen him look like the old man that he is. He was speaking in softer tones than even his normally soft speaking voice. His head was bowed. He was pale. He just looked frail." But then, after lunch and an apparent rest, Benedict returned for the afternoon session. "It was a complete transformation. He was lively, vigorous, attentive, and with his usual good humor," Fessio said. Clearly, at his age Benedict has good days and bad, even good half-days and bad."

As we all know, all people's days are numbered, and God knows the number of them. Psalm 39:4- "Show me, O LORD, my life's end and the number of my days; let me know how fleeting is my life."
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