The prophecy of San Malachi: What is and why people talk about it?

Pope Francis’s recent death on April 21 has revived interest in the centennial “prophecy of the potatoes”, also known as the prophecy of San Malachi, which Some say It indicates that Pope Francis was the last Pope that the Church will have.

The prophecy of more than 900 years old, According to the Catholic Encyclopediaintends to describe each of the potatoes from 1143 to the end of the times, and Pope Francis seems, at least at first glance, to be the last Pope described in the prophecy, which suggests that the world will end now that his papacy has concluded.

A more detailed analysis reveals significant evidence that contradicts the authenticity of this supposed prophecy. This is what you need to know.

What is the “prophecy of the potatoes”?

He Document in question It was supposedly a private revelation given to San Malachi, a medieval figure that served as Archbishop of Armagh (Ireland) in the twelfth century. As they say, he made a visit to Rome in which he had a vision of future potatoes and put it in writing.

The prophecy consists of a list of 112 short phrases; Enigmatic “slogans” in Latin that supposedly represent the potatoes since the time of San Malachi onwards.

The slogans usually contain references to several elements, such as the name of the Pope (his papal name, his birth name or his last name), his place of origin or a heraldic shield related to him (his papal weapons, his family shield or the shield of his order or place of origin). They often involve word games related to these issues, although this is more evident in Latin.

Some believe that slogans predict the succession of Catholic potatoes, concluding with a last Pope known as “Pedro el Romano”.

The penultimate motto of the prophecy of the Popes has been associated with Pope Benedict XVI, who resigned from the Papacy in 2013 and died at the end of 2022. Pope Francis’s choice as his successor leads us to the last name of the prophecy of the popes, which many have taken to indicate the final pope at the end of the world.

This passage says the following:

“Pedro el Romano, who will shepherd the sheep in the midst of many tribulations; when they finish, the city of the seven hills will be destroyed, and the terrible judge will judge his people. End.”

Is it genuine?

This prophecy is not a private revelation approved by the Vatican, although it has exerted influence on some Catholic circles for several centuries. However, there are evidence that questions its authenticity.

First, the prophecy was not published until 1595, although San Malachi died in 1148. There is no record that there was during the 447 years. Supposedly, this was due to the fact that the prophecy remained forgotten in a Roman archive and was not rediscovered until 1590.

While the fact that the document is not mentioned in the hundreds of years between the time of your supposed composition and rediscovery does not prove that it is false, it does show significant doubts about its authenticity.

It has proposed That the document, instead of being an authentic revelation, is a falsification composed around 1590 and then placed in the archive for political purposes, a statement that would explain the prolonged absence of the document.

Is its content true?

The logical approach is to examine the content of the prophecy to see what theory of its origins is more consistent: does the content seem to suggest that it was written in 1100 or does it suggest that it was written around 1590?

Many observers have thought the latter. One reason is that the slogans of the period before 1590 are very easy to connect with the popes to those who supposedly represent. On the other hand, the slogans assigned to the potatoes after 1590 are much more difficult to connect with the potatoes to those who supposedly represent and, often, can only be connected artificially.

Some examples of slogans that can be easily related to potatoes prior to 1590 include:

• “From the castle of the tiber“(” From a castle to the shores of the Tiber “). It is related to Celestino II (1143-1144), who was born in Citta Di Castello (” Ciudad del Castillo “), on the shores of the Tiber River.

• “On a small man“(” Of a small man. ” piccolo (small) and man (man).

In contrast, some examples of potatoes after 1590 include:

• “PIA Stats in Bello“(” Pious city in war “). This is related to Innocent IV (1591), but there is no good way to link it to this motto. Some have pointed out that it was patriarch of Jerusalem before their choice to the papacy, and Jerusalem could be considered a” pious city “, but also Rome and many others. Almost any Christian city would count, and Jerusalem was not a Christian city at that time. He was not at war when he was patriarch.

• “Eagle”(“ Águila Rapaz ”). It is related to Pío VII (1800-1823), but there is no good way to link it with this motto. Some have proposed that his reign coincided with that of Napoleon and that Napoleon could be described as a rapaz eagle (that is, a commander of hungry armies), but this is very little convincing and converts the motto of the slogan Pope, but from someone else who occupied a prominent place in the world scene during his reign.

• “Religion of plunder“(” Destroyed religion “). This is related to Benedict XV (1914-1922), but there is no good way to link it in particular with this motto. There is no obvious connection with its name, family, place of origin or shield of weapons. It did not destroy religion or religious life. None of the two was destroyed during their reign. It reigned during the First World War, but that did not destroy any of them. It reigned when communism came to power in Russia.

What should we do with all this?

Let’s go back to the motto that supposedly describes Pope Francis: “Pedro El Romano.” The name Pedro does not have a clear connection with Francisco, whose baptism name was Jorge Mario Bergolio (unless he held the position of San Pedro, the Papacy). And despite having some Italian ancestry, Francisco was not Roman by birth, but Argentine.

There are more: the Catholic encyclopedia points out that, although the prophecy designates “Pedro el Romano” as the last Pope, he does not say that no Pope will intervene between him and his predecessor, called “Glory Olive“(” The glory of the olive tree “). The prophecy simply says that Pedro the Roman, when it appears, will be the last.

Therefore, there is no convincing reason to believe that Pedro the Roman is Pope Francis. (Many journalistic articles and commentators also claim that the prophecy predicts that Pedro El Romano will appear in 2027, but in reality the document does not mention any year).

Considering all this, Catholics should not worry much about the prophecies of San Malachi. It is not an approved appearance, and the evidence agrees that it is a falsification composed around 1590.

More fundamentally, Jesus indicated that we would not know when the end will come, and, in line with the warning of our Lord, the predictions of the end of the world based on the Bible have a discouraging history. Trying to predict the end of the times based on an unproceded private revelation that shows indications of being falsified is even more wrong.

We must trust God, live according to his word and leave the future in his hands.

As Jesus said:

“Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will worry for yourself. Every day your affliction is enough” (Mt 6,34).

This article was adapted from a publication by Jimmy Akin in the National Catholic Register blog of February 24, 2013.

Translated and adapted by the ACI Press team. Originally published in CNA.