The Catholic church was thrown into turmoil [Monday] after Pope Benedict XVI made the shock decision to quit the papacy because of his deteriorating health. The decision, delivered in Latin and in unemotional tones by Pope Benedict XVI to a gathering of cardinals on Monday, came ''like a bolt out of the blue'', one of the participants said, and it soon ricocheted around the world.

In a decision that surprised even his closest aides, the 85-year-old Pontiff said his strength was 'no longer adequate to continue in office due to his advanced age'.  He announced his resignation in Latin to a meeting of Vatican cardinals this morning, saying he did not have the 'strength of mind and body' to continue leading more than a billion Roman Catholics worldwide.

He is the first Pope to resign since Gregory XII in 1415 and no Pontiff in history has stepped down on health grounds. Shortly after making his announcement, the statue of Peter's horse atop St Peter's Basilica was struck by lightning not once but TWICE.

Which brings us full circle to when Pope Benedict was elected in 2005 to replace the late John Paul II bringing an obscure 10th century Irish priest back to the center square.

According to legend, Irish Bishop Malachy O'Morgair had a strange vision during a trip to Rome to report to Pope Innocent II.

In his vision, Malachy was given a list of all the Popes who would rule over the Catholic Church from his day until the Second Coming.  Malachy put the list together using short announcements that indicated some noticeable trait from each Pope, beginning with Pope Celestine II, who was elected in 1130.

Altogether, St. Malachy listed a total of 112 Popes from Celestine II until the return of Christ.  He committed the visions to paper and handed the manuscript to Pope Innocent II.  Innocent placed the manuscript in the archives where they remained "unread" for nearly four centuries.

Pope John Paul I was the 109th Pope.  Malachy identified him by the motto, 'de medietate lunae' which means 'of the half moon'.  John Paul I held one of the shortest pontificates in Vatican history, living only 34 days after his elevation to the papacy.  John Paul I was elected Pope on August 26, 1978 and reigned from one moon cycle to the next.

St. Malachy's motto for John Paul II was 'de labore solis' which is interpreted either as 'from the toil of the sun' or, 'of the eclipse of the sun'. Karol Wojtyla was born on May 18, 1920, during a solar eclipse.  He was buried at the Vatican on April 8, 2005.

The following is a verbatim quote from MSNBC, dated April 8, 2005.

"The moon blotted out the sun Friday across a wide stretch extending from the South Pacific to the Americas, with a precious few witnessing a total eclipse at sea. Thousands more flocked to Central and South America to see the sun reduced to a narrow "ring of fire" around the dark moon."

The motto, "Gloria Olivae" which means the 'glory of the olive'.  One of the many Catholic 'orders' is the Order of St Benedict, which is also known as the 'Olivetans'.  Cardinal Ratzinger chose for his Papal name, Benedict XIV.

According to the legend, Benedict XIV will be the last Pope before 'Peter the Roman' of whom Malachy has much more to say than he does of the other Popes. Instead of a motto, Malachy gave specifics, writing;

"In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church there will reign Peter the Roman, who will feed his flock among many tribulations; after which the seven-hilled city will be destroyed and the dreadful Judge will judge the people".

Assessment:

Logic and Scripture both dictate that true prophecy can only come from God.  Logically, a prophecy concerning the future requires perfect foreknowledge, not just of the event itself, but of the consequences of every previous event that leads up to the event being prophesied.

For example, the restoration of Israel.

Had it not been for the Holocaust, the Jews of Europe would still be European Jews, instead of Holocaust survivors forced by circumstances to seek a Jewish State for their collective security.

If Hitler's great-granny had joined a convent or got hit by a bus before giving birth to Hitler's ancestor, there'd have been no Nazi Party, no WWII, no Holocaust, and, arguably, no reason for world Jewry to seek a Jewish State at that particular point in history.

Scripture identifies prophecy as God's 'signature'.

"Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure:" (Isaiah 46:10-11)

The Scriptures also say that Divine revelation concluded with the Revelation of Jesus Christ to the Apostle John.

"For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book." (Revelation 22:18)

So, if both the Scriptures and common logic demand that only God can be the Author of prophecy, what are we to do with St. Malachy?  There are all kinds of problems that can be ascribed to Malachy's prophecies in order to mount an attempt to discredit them.

They were 'hidden away' in the Vatican for centuries, prompting some to speculate they were actually written in the 16th, rather than the 11th century.

That would explain how Malachy could seemingly 'prophesy' the sixty-six popes from Celestine in 1130 to Paul III in 1549.  But it doesn't explain the seemingly amazing accuracy of Malachy's mottos for the other sixty-six Popes from Paul III forward.

Malachy just nailed, it would seem, Pope #45 in a row -- since the list was unsealed in the 16th century -- with the elevation of Benedict the Olivetan.  That's a pretty amazing record no matter how you look at it.  Is it of God?

I don't think so.  The oldest lie in human history was offered by Satan in the Garden of Eden.

"For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil." (Genesis 3:5)

Human beings know right from wrong, because those are actions.  Good and evil, on the other hand, are OUTCOMES, something known only to God.

God often uses evil for good.  When Joseph confronted his brothers for selling him into slavery in Egypt, Joseph noted that they meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.

Extra-biblical prophecy always has the same fatal flaw, whether one looks at Nostradamus or Malachy.  They 'prophesy' ACTIONS, not OUTCOMES.

Bible prophecy tells 'the end from the beginning'.  Nostradamus was able, according to his apologists, to foretell the rise of Hitler, but Nostradamus failed to prognosticate Hitler's defeat.  Malachy's prophecies are similarly vague and open to broad interpretation.

Satan is a master counterfeiter and he wants nothing less than to be worshiped as God.  He is also capable of 'prophecy' in the sense that he has his own master plan and his own timetable.  The difference with Satan is that not everything always goes exactly to plan, since he is a created, and therefore, fallible, being.

But it is no stretch to say he was capable of influencing Hitler's rise as part of his master plan, or that he could have 'inspired' Nostradamus to 'predict' it.  When the time was right, Satan just picked the closest match he could find, and let the human imagination fill in the blanks.

Neither would it be difficult for Satan to influence the decisions of the College of Cardinals to select the series of Popes who most closely fits Malachy's list.

Satan isn't infallible, but he can read the Bible as well as you or I can.  Plus he has the added advantage of six thousand years of manipulating mankind, and the Scriptures reveal that God originally blessed him with superior intelligence.

Pope Benedict was the Vatican's official Head Inquisitor and 'Defender of the Faith' until his elevation to the papacy.  The only actual connection between Benedict and the Olivetans is his choice of papal name.

But it comes close to fitting Malachy's prophecy, and it is no stretch to think Satan is as capable of influencing a papal candidate as he is of influencing any other mortal.  If Satan wanted Ratzinger to take the name 'Benedict', he could sure make it seem like it was a good idea at the time.

The same with John Paul II and the eclipses.  Satan can do the math and figure out solar eclipses in advance.  We can.  It then becomes a matter of picking the closest match and manipulating events to fit.

Here is what we know about our enemy: Satan is the universe's master deceiver.  His ultimate goal is to be received as God.  Only God is capable of prophecy.

But Satan has a counterfeit plan of his own, and he has had six thousand years to develop it.  St Malachy's 'prophecies' -- like other extra-biblical prophecies, are part of that overall plan to counterfeit the miracles of God, so that, one day,

"He as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God." (2nd Thessalonians 2:4)

But Malachy's prophecies, counterfeit or not, do confirm what the Scriptures say in one respect.  It confirms that it isn't just Bible prophecy 'nuts' who believe we are in the last days.  It seems that Satan believes it, too.

In any case, we'll find out soon.  Pope Benedict has given his notice.  First. let's recap:

St. Malachy predicted the 110th Pope would be associated with a solar eclipse. John Paul II was born during a solar eclipse, and a solar eclipse occurred on the day of his funeral.  How weird is that?

St. Malachy assigned the 111th Pope "glory of the olive" whose name ultimately derives from the Mount of Olives in the New Testament.  The 111th Pope chose the name of the Benedictine Order.

The 112th Pope will be the last Pope (as assigned by St. Malachy).  If he chooses any name except Peter, then St. Malachy's predictive run will have completed its course and one more Vatican conspiracy will bite the dust.

". . . Peter the Roman, who will nourish the sheep in many tribulations; when they are finished, the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the dreadful judge will judge his people.  The end."

On the other hand . . . if Malachy gets this one right, it will be just one more confirmation that we are living in the last of the last days before the Lord returns.  

Maranatha!