In the year 1130 upon the death of Pope Honorius II, Gregorio Papereschi was elected as Pope, and chose the name Innocent II.
Unfortunately for Pope Innocent II, not all the Cardinals agreed with his succession and so a defacto anti-pope was also elected who took the name Anacletus II.
These were troubling times for the reigning Pontiff as he led the Church through these difficult years. Pope Innocent II also decided to call a Tenth Ecumenical Council in 1139, to ratify his position and declare null and void the position which the usurper Anacletus II had taken.
It was during this time that Archbishop Malachy of Armagh met with Pope Innocent II, and it was also during this visit to Rome that Malachy would be the recipient of revelations of the future reigning Pontiffs.
Upon seeing this vision, Malachy wrote down what he had seen and then gave them to Pope Innocent II. This manuscript of Archbishop Malachy would then be relegated to the Vatican archives where they would lay undisturbed for centuries.
And even years later when St. Bernard wrote about the life of St. Malachy no mention was made of the prophetic manuscript which Malachy had given to Pope Innocent II. This has led to confusion over the authenticity of the particular manuscript accredited to St. Malachy.
Although the prophecies are not encrypted, they do bear a signature code in that the future Popes are not named, but in symbolic language the manuscript hints at the titles and names of the future Popes.
Let us now examine the prophecies of St. Malachy, which were found in the Vatican archives.
St. Malachy in the last portion says, "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."
But the prophecies begin with...
Pope No: 167 Celestine II (1143-1144) 1 Ex castro Tyberis(from a castle on the Tiber)Hist.: Celestin II was born in Citta di Castello, Toscany, on the shores of the Tiber
168 Lucius II (1144-1145) 2 Inimicus expulsus
169 Eugene III (1145-1153) 3 Ex magnitudine montis(Of the greatness of the mount)Hist.: Born in the castle of Grammont (latin: mons magnus), his family name was Montemagno
170 Anastasius IV (1153-1154) 4 Abbas Suburranus
171 Adrian IV (1154-1159) 5 De rure albo(field of Albe)Hist.: Born in the town of Saint-Alban
171 Adrian IV (1154-1159) 5 De rure albo(field of Albe)Hist.: Born in the town of Saint-Alban
Antipope Victor IV (1159-1164) 6 Ex tetro carcere Antipope Paschal III (1164-1168) 7 Via trans-Tyberina Antipope Calistus III (1168-1178) 8 De Pannonia Tusciæ
172 Alexander III (1159-1181) 9 Ex ansere custode
173 Lucius III (1181-1185) 10 Lux in ostio
174 Urban III (1185-1187) 11 Sus in cribo
175 Gregory VIII (1187) 12 Ensis Laurentii
176 Clement III (1187-1191) 13 De schola exiet
177 Celestine III (1191-1198) 14 De rure bovensi
178 Innocent III (1198-1216) 15 Comes signatus(signed Count)Hist.: descendant of the noble Signy, later called Segni family
179 Honorius III (1216-1227) 16 Canonicus de latere
180 Gregory IX (1227-1241) 17 Avis Ostiensis(Bird of Ostia)Hist.: before his election he was Cardinal of Ostia
The list continues to more recent times;
262 Pius XII (1939-1958) 106 Pastor angelicus(Angelic Shepherd)Hist.: This Pope was very mystical, and is believed to have received visions. People would kneel when they received telephone calls from him. His encyclicals add enormously to the understanding of Catholic beliefs (even if they are now overlooked because of focus on the Second Vatican Council, which occurred so soon after his reign).
263 John XXIII (1958-1963) 107 Pastor et Nauta(pastor and marine)Hist.: prior to his election he was patriarch of Venice, a marine city, home of the gondolas
264 Paul VI (1963-1978) 108 Flos florum(flower of flowers)Hist.: his arms displayed three lilies.
265 John Paul I (1978) 109 De medietate Lunæ(of the half of the moon)Hist.: Albino Luciani, born in Canale d'Agardo, diocese of Belluno, (beautiful moon) Elected pope on August 26, his reign lasted about a month, from half a moon to the next half...
266 John Paul II (1978-2005) 110 De labore Solis(of the eclipse of the sun, or from the labour of the sun)Hist.: Karol Wojtyla was born on May 18, 1920 during a solar eclipse. He also comes from behind the former Iron Curtain (the East, where the Sun rises). He might also be seen to be the fruit of the intercession of the Woman Clothed with the Sun labouring in Revelation 12 (because of his devotion to the Virgin Mary). His Funeral occurred on 8 April, 2005 when there was a solar eclipse visible in the Americas.
267 Benedict XVI (2005-) 111 Gloria olivæThe Benedictine order traditionally said this Pope would come from their order, since a branch of the Benedictine order is called the Olivetans. St Benedict is said to have prophesied that before the end of the world, a member of his order would be Pope and would triumphantly lead the Church in its fight against evil. While the Holy Father chose the name "Benedict", this does not seem enough to fulfil the prophecy. Nor is it clear how Benedict XVI (a Bavarian) is "Glory of the Olives". Since he is said to have remarked in the Conclave after saying he would take the name Benedict that it was partly to honour Benedict XV, a pope of peace and reconciliation, perhaps Benedict XVI will be a peacemaker in the Church or in the World, and thus carry the olive branch.
And then as stated above we come to the last Pope listed, which will herald in a great time of persecution for the Church before the Judge will judge his people.
There is much controversy surrounding this particular Prophecy as no names have been mentioned and therefore this has led to more speculation over the meaning of the prophecies written down by St. Malachy.
And many are also debating whether the prophecies were actually written by this Saint, or by another person who came many years later.
I encourage all to read these prophecies, with due care and discernment, and to place their confidence in the Word of God and the Teachings of the Catholic Church.
Peace of Christ to ALL
Copyright © 2005 Marie Smith. All rights reserved.
