The time is near (again)

 

Of course, "The Prophecy of the Popes" - attributed to the medieval Irish saint Malachy but actually a late 16th century fake - has been dusted off in the aftermath of Pope Francis´ passing. 

According to the true believers, the next-to-last pope in the prophecy, Glory of the Olive, is Benedict XVI. This would make Francis the last pope, called Petrus Romanus in the prophecy. And that, in turn, means that the end of the world is near. Except of course that the actual text of the "prophecy" doesn´t fit anything that happened under Francis...

Apparently, three of the supposed front runners to the position of next pope are named Peter and one of them is an Italian (hence Roman). So perhaps the next pontiff will be the elusive last one? But please note that there will be massive persecutions of Catholics under Peter the Roman according to "Malachy", which doesn´t seem particularly likely any time soon.

However, we can say with outmost certainty that "The Prophecy of the Popes" will be taken down from the shelves again when Francis´ successor passes away or resigns. World without end!