Something wicked this way comes?

There have been a rash of meteorological events in the news lately, notably meteors. From the meteor that exploded over Russia to the fireball that streaked over the East Coast of the U.S. last Friday, there seem to have been an abnormal amount of meteors streaking over the Earth lately. And apparently, there have been.



As the above chart I got from from sott.net shows, the number of reported meteor fireballs has more than doubled in the past three years. Now I didn't think too much of all the reported fireballs until I saw that chart. When numbers increase that much in such a short time, it usually indicates something. What that something could be? Well that's up for debate.

Could these be the "signs in the sky" Jesus spoke about in Luke 21, versus 11 and 25? Could these be warning signs of more, even larger heavenly objects headed our way? There may be no way to know for sure, but one thing that is sure; numbers like that can't be ignored. Watch and pray.

Prophecies of the Black Pope, St. Malachy, and Pius X revisited

Well now we know who the new Pope is: Jorge Mario Bergoglio, taking the name Francis. Is this Peter the Roman spoken of by St. Malachy. There are probably many people today declaring St. Malachy's prophecy broken since he is neither named Peter nor from Italy (as a few candidates were). Yet it is really not necessary for a pope to be from Italy or named Peter to be the "Peter the Roman" St. Malachy spoke about since all popes reside in Rome and are seen as the "living Peter." Also of note is the fact that the "Peter the Roman" paragraph is unnumbered, leading some to believe that it is meant to be about the proceeding name and not a new person. There are also people who believe that "Peter the Roman" will be the last Pope, but any number of unnamed popes may come in between. I don't necessarily hold to that view since it assumes St. Malachy either had an incomplete vision or just left Popes off his list (or were some removed by the Vatican before it was published?)

While many are searching for ways to link Pope Francis to Peter the Roman, I've been interested in a different prophecy. Before the election my father (a lifelong Catholic) said that this pope was supposed to be the Black Pope, a moniker based on his evil persona and not necessarily his race. When I asked him about the specifics of the prophecy he said he didn't remember, just that it's been a common saying. Apparently Catholics once believed the last pope would be called the Black Pope. While researching the "Black Pope" I came across this old Italian prophecy (no specifics of origin were found):

"When the White Pope and the Black Pope shall die during the same night, then there will dawn upon the Christian nations the Great White Day."

Now all this became pertinent when I heard one Church historian mention that Jesuits were never elected Pope before because of their bad reputation and that their leader is called the Black Pope. Since Pope Francis is the first Jesuit Pope, would it be accurate to ascribe to him the moniker of "the Black Pope?" And if so, this seems one of only a few times in history when that prophecy could come to pass...as we have two Popes at the moment because of Benedict's retirement instead of death. Take it for what it is. Interesting, to say the least.

In my last post I also mentioned a prophecy by Pope Pius X, who reportedly had a vision of a Pope who would have to flee the Vatican, stepping over the bodies of dead priests and bishops to do so. After a similar second vision shortly before his death, Pius said that it would be a Pope with the same name as his. This prompted me to wonder if the new Pope would take the name 'Pius' and to be very concerned if he did. Well he didn't so we appear safe. Although, I did fail to take into account what if Pius meant his real name. I suppose if you change your name later in life and see a vision of someone with the same name you've had for most of your life, you may exclaim "he has the same name!" So I went back to find out Pope Pius X real name. It was Giuseppe.

Now since Pope Francis' name is Jorge, or George in English, he does not have the same name as Pope Pius X. I even ran the names through translations to see what they are in other languages. Which is when I found something interesting. Giuseppe, translated into English, is Joseph. And though I almost forgot about him, there is a man alive today who has the title of Pope and is named Joseph. Joseph Ratzinger is the name of Pope Benedict. And I suppose if you have a vision of a man dressed like the Pope fleeing the Vatican, you're going to assume he's the current Pope, since a Pope retiring almost never happens.

I may be stretching here, (and while I do believe the Earth is headed for a Geographic Pole Shift, I caution against predicting times) but when else in history is there a "White Pope" and a "Black Pope" living together at the Vatican and one of those men is named Joseph, the same as Pius X? This all may mean nothing and simply be interesting reading...but it does make one think. Especially with all the other signs we see on a daily and global basis. Watch and Pray.

The Prophecy of the Popes

Well the immediate event that has caused shock waves in the world of End Times prophecy is the retirement of Pope Benedict. Coming like a shot out of the blue, the Pope announced his retirement only a few weeks ago, and today is his last day as pope. Besides being a historical event (he's the first pope to retire in over 600 years) it is also a prophetic event, at least concerning St. Malachy's Prophecy of the Popes. If you don't know, St. Malachy was an Irish priest who supposedly fell into a trance while visiting Rome in 1139 A.D. and rattled off 112 short phrases, each one corresponding to a future pope.

While you may believe in this story or not, the fact is that St. Malachy's supposed prophecies have only increased in accuracy as time has gone one. A simple web search will lead to them all; I won't bother writing them all here. The main point is that the pope after the current pope, Benedict, is the last on the list. The message concerning him reads:

"In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church there will reign Petrus Romanus, 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."

Petrus Romanus, or Peter the Roman in English, is the pope that should follow Pope Benedict. Interestingly, there are quite a few Cardinals that are either named Peter or are Italian amongst the frontrunners to become the next pope...which is more than a little creepy. Peter Turkson of Ghana is actually the favorite at the moment. So it seems that St. Malachy may be right on about the next pope. The Final Pope. Before the seven-hilled city (Rome) is destroyed and the dreadful Judge (God) arrives.

Not surprisingly the End Times community is abuzz about what this means for the possibilities of the future. There are quite a few people who believe that the next pope will be the False Prophet of the Book of Revelation who will assist the Anti-Christ in the takeover of the world.

And while a future "pope" may indeed fit that bill, I myself do not believe Peter the Roman will be it. The reason for this is twofold. One, I figure St. Malachy would have made him sound at least a little more evil than he did if his vision showed the Pope/False Prophet. His version of Peter the Roman makes him seem pretty decent. That doesn't necessarily mean he won't be, of course. But to me it's a small clue. The big clue, however, is the prophecy of Pope Pius the Tenth.

Pius X actually had two reported visions of his own. The first occurred in 1909, when during an audience for the general chapter of the Franciscan order Pope Pius appeared to enter into a trance. Those present remained silent and after a few minutes, Pius opened his eyes wide, rose from his seat, and exclaimed, "What I have seen is terrifying! Will I be the one, or will it be a successor? What is certain is that the Pope will leave Rome and, in leaving the Vatican, he will have to pass over the dead bodies of his priests!"

Pope Pius X had another vision shortly before his death of which he said, "I have seen one of my successors, of the same name, who was fleeing over the bodies of his brethren. He will take refuge in some hiding place; but after a brief respite, he will die a cruel death. Respect for God has disappeared from human hearts. They wish to efface even God's memory. This perversity is nothing less than the beginning of the last days of the world."

While these visions may mean nothing on their own, they are confirmed, or at least mirrored by other Catholic prophecies. Most notably those of John of the Cleft Rock (an enigmatic 14th Century mystic who no one really knows much about) who says: "At that time, the Pope with his cardinals will have to flee Rome in tragic circumstances to a place where they will be unknown. The Pope will die a cruel death in exile."

And a 13th Century mystic John of Vitiguerro who said: "The pope will change his residence and the Church will not be defended for twenty-five months or more because, during all that time there will be no Pope in Rome. After many tribulations, a Pope shall be elected out of those who survived the persecutions."

While it is possible that Pope Pius X used the knowledge of these previous prophecies to invent his own, the name of the next pope may make things a bit more clear. Since the events spoken of in those prophecies have yet to take place, and if the next pope is indeed the last as prophesied by St. Malachy, then it stands to reason that the next pope will be named Pius, as Pius X predicted. While not necessarily proof of anything, if the new pope takes the name Pius, I will see that as way too big of a coincidence to ignore. We won't have long to wait to find out.

Discerning the Times

I've been gathering info concerning End Times prophecies for about 5 years, and now seems like a good time to share that material with like-minded folk. I am a firm believer in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and a devoted follower of Jesus as the one true Messiah. I've studied the Bible and have found it remarkably strong. Faith always plays a part in belief, no matter what you believe. I've found that it takes just as much (or more) faith to not believe in God and the validity of the Bible. So my findings will decidedly have a Christian slant to them. There is A LOT of End Times material going around now and some of it stands more strongly than others. It can be a lot to wade through, which is why having Jesus and the Bible as a guide is good practice, or else one could easily get lost in all of the theories and ideas spinning about. That said, I also find material that some Christians would avoid useful, so while Jesus will always be my North Star, some info will be well outside the realm of Christianity...or at least the common idea of Christianity.

My main objective is not to sway people to one belief or theory over another. I believe it's dangerous to believe that you already know how the future will unfold, because as any Christian can tell you, God's ways are well above our own understanding at times. I believe it's important to know the signs pointing to what will happen, and to keep an open mind about how they will happen. That way, if things happen differently than how we imagined, we won't lose faith.


Luke 18:8 - "When the Son of Man returns, will He find faith on the earth?"