I'm one of those closet prophecy junkies. I imagine there are a lot more out there among my Christian brethren. So, like many of you I sat up and took notice when the Pope announced his retirement. While a Protestant like myself isn't effected by a change in management in the Catholic Church, the significance of a retiring Pope cannot be ignored. As I understand it, the last time this happened, in the 15th century, had more to do with a rift in the church and the existence of two men claiming the title of Pope than any real desire to spend more time on the golf course.
That alone is enough to make one think. For those of you who've toyed with prophecy, you also know of the prophecies naming this next Pope as the last. Now, I try not to get too caught up, because prophecy is a funny thing. It is written in such a manner that you don't understand it's significance until after the fact. Most of the prophecies about Jesus were somewhat useless in predicting when He would arrive on Earth, but in hindsight their accuracy was amazing.
Then there is the problem of the Peter the Roman prophecy not existing anywhere in the bible itself. It's a Catholic prophecy, and I don't believe it's recognized by the hierarchy of the church herself. The prophecy comes from two sources--Nostradamis and St. Malachy. Hardly basement conspiracy theorists.
What I take from prophecy and the times we live in is this: we are heading toward Earth's final chapter. But God's time is not our time. When I say time I mean it in the literal sense. For those who saw The Genesis Code movie, you have a fantastic understanding of time from God's perspective. The engineer in me rejoiced when I saw this movie (though the movie critic thought the plot a bit thin). I rejoiced because I've never seen the theory of relativity explained so well outside my college physics classes. They nailed it.
My point is this: we shouldn't stop working toward our goals, give up on our dreams, empty our 401k's because of this prophecy, or any. Remember, Moses took 80 years to come back and free the Israelites. The shepherds at Jesus birth probably wondered what happened to the baby in the manger. I wonder how many of them remembered thirty-three years later.
My new novel uses the concept of time as a focal point. I believe prophecy is being fulfilled and the little things that occur in our world are actually pivotal in the fulfillment of God's plan. I hope you'll join me on this little journey through our future. It will bring together the almost unnoticed events of the day and point them toward a final event that will close the book on all prophecy.
So I'll watch with some excitement as they announce the next Pope. If his name is Peter, I'll get somewhat more excited. If not, I'll write it off as another prophecy that was really no prophecy at all. What I am confident in is what's written in God's word. I can assure you that His time is coming.
Are you ready?
1 comment:
I have read that in his native Ghana, Peter Cardinal Turkson is referred to as "Peter the Roman", so could refer to the pontiff's baptismal name rather than the name adopted at elevation to the Papacy. Just another thought; one does have to remember that the prophecy did not suface until some 200 years after Malachy's death.
Post a Comment