Pope John Paul II was elected in 1978, at the age of 58. He died in 2005, just shy of his 85th birthday. His reign lasted over 26 years. The longest reigns for any Pope so far:
Pope Saint Peter: 33 years and six weeks (the same as the length of Christ’s life).
Pope Pius IX (1846-1878): 31 years, 7 months.
Pope John Paul II (1978-2005): 26 years, 5 months.
Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903): 25 years, 5 months.
I believe that no Pope will ever reign longer than Saint Peter did. The providence of God does not permit any Pope to reign for a length of time greater than the length of Christ’s life on earth, from the Incarnation to the Crucifixion, nor longer than the first Pope, the Apostle Peter, whose reign defines and establishes the Papacy.
After the death of Pope John Paul II, the Cardinals (it is said and assumed) did not want to have another Pope who would reign for such a long time. The Cardinals have the authority to elect a Pope, and they understandably like to exercise that authority more often than once every 25 or so years. So they deliberately chose a successor to Pope John Paul II who was older, and who most probably would not reign for too long.
Pope Leo XIII died at the age of 93. All other Popes (as far as we know) died in their 80′s or earlier. List of ages of Popes and the Longest Reigning Popes. Pope Benedict XVI was born 16 April 1927, so he is 84 years and 6 months old today (16 Oct 2011). He was the fifth oldest Pope at election, and if he were to die soon, he would rank as the 8th oldest Pope at death. If he lives for only another 3 years and a few months, he would be the second oldest Pope. My point is that there is a strong likelihood that Pope Benedict XVI will die relatively soon, within the next few years.
As for his health at the present time, it is difficult to say. The Holy See is typically not forthcoming about the health of the Popes. But this recent story notes that the Pope is now using a wheeled platform in Saint Peter’s Basilica, perhaps indicating a decrease in health. Aging Pope Uses Wheeled Platform in St. Peter’s
But there is another consideration: eschatology. We are living now on the threshold of the tribulation. Many Catholics who disagree with my eschatology nevertheless agree that the tribulation will begin soon. But in my view, the start of the tribulation requires a very different type of Pope than the preparation for the tribulation requires.
Pope Benedict XVI is the Pope of peace. When Pope John Paul II was still reigning, I predicted that the next Pope would take the name Benedict, and would be a Pope of peace:
“This Pope will be the next Pope after John Paul II, the one Saint Malachy calls ‘the glory of the olive.’ He will take the name Pope Benedict XVI…. He will be a peace-maker.” (The Bible and the Future of the World, 5th edition, p. 16.)
“The first Pope after John Paul II, the one just before Peter the Roman, is described with the phrase, ‘From the Glory of the Olive.’ This has been interpreted to mean that this Pope will be a Benedictine, because a branch of the Benedictines is called ‘Olivetans.’ This Pope will not be a Benedictine. But he will take the name Pope Benedict XVI…. This Pope will reign during the time just before the terrible war between the Arab nations and Europe. He will constantly seek peace, the olive branch, between nations, between religions between Christian groups. But he will not be able to bring peace to the nations because peace is for a later time. The olive branch is a symbol of peace; the glory of the olive is peace. As his reign ends, war begins. This Pope’s reign will end before the time of war in Europe begins. The reign of Pope Benedict XVI will be brief.” (The Bible and the Future of the World, 5th edition, p. 128.)
“This fifth edition was first published as an ebook on November 18 of 2004, and as a printed book in January of 2005.”
I was correct that the Pope after Pope John Paul II would take the name Benedict, and that he would be a Pope of peace. However, I have been wrong on a number of other points in my eschatological predictions.
In my eschatology, the next Pope, the one Saint Malachy calls ‘Peter the Roman’, will reign during World War 3, the first event of the tribulation. He is also the Pope who triggers the great apostasy, simply by requiring Catholics to believe and practice the Catholic Faith. Most Catholics leave the Church in response, along with very many priests and religious, a surprisingly large number of Bishops, and more than a few Cardinals. The great apostasy begins very soon, within the next year or two, in my opinion.
This next Pope will be Cardinal Arinze, and he will take the name Pope Pius XIII. He will flee Vatican City during war, be captured, and die a martyr (in a prison in Iraq). From my book, The Secrets of Medjugorje and Garabandal Revealed:
“This is one meaning of the third secret of Fatima: When the city of Rome is half in ruins, then the Pope will go to his martyrdom. The City is half in ruins because of a war: World War 3. The Pope will be martyred because the extremists who began this war capture him, put him on trial, blind him (putting out his eyes), and then imprison him; he dies in prison with no one to rescue him. He will be captured in 2012; he will die in early 2013.”
At this point in time, I am uncertain whether the above-described events will occur in 2012-2013, or perhaps a little later.
From my book, The First Part of the Tribulation (p. 51):
“Pope Pius X saw a vision of a successor of his, who had the same name (i.e. Pius), fleeing Rome over the dead bodies of members of the clergy. According to my interpretation of Sacred Scripture, the next Pope, i.e. Peter the Roman, (i.e. the pope after Pope Benedict XVI) will flee Vatican City and Rome during World War 3; many members of the clergy will be killed during that time period. When he flees, the city will be half in ruins, due to the civil disorder, violence, and rioting that occurs during the war. He will escape Rome, but he will soon be captured and blinded, and he will die in a prison in Iraq with no one to rescue him. I believe that Peter the Roman (Cardinal Arinze/Pope Pius XIII) is the Pope foreseen by Pope Pius X.”
The reign of the next Pope (Pius XIII) will be short. And his reign is followed by a number of other Popes with relatively short reigns.
When will the reign of Pope Benedict XVI end? According to my eschatology (which is fallible and speculative), he will die relatively soon, either in 2011 or in early 2012.
See my more recent post The Three Popes prediction of Garabandal for more on the reign of Pope Benedict and the beginning of the tribulation.
If I am correct about the timing of the tribulation, his reign ends as the tribulation begins. The death of Pope Benedict XVI and the election of his successor (Cardinal Arinze/Pius XIII) occur at the start of the tribulation.
For more about the initial events of the tribulation, and the election of the next Pope, see my new Kindle booklet:
Notes on the Apocalypse: 2012
Updated 13 Dec 2011 to add:
Pope Confirms Trip to Cuba, Mexico Before Easter
“Pope Benedict XVI plans to travel to Cuba and Mexico before Easter next year, saying he hopes his visit will strengthen the faith and encourage Catholics there to seek justice and hope. Benedict confirmed his travel plans Monday during a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica honoring Mexico’s patron saint, the Virgin of Guadalupe.”
I think that there is a good chance the Pope might die on this trip, either from assassination or from an accident or natural causes. In my understanding of eschatology, this trip occurs at a fitting time for the transition to the next Pope, who guides the Church at the start of the tribulation in 2012.
Easter is April 8th in 2012, so it is likely the Pope will make his trip before April. And it takes time to plan this type of visit, so it will probably occur in February or March, not January.
Updated 17 Dec 2011 to add:
Pope heads into busy Christmas season tired, weak
It seems that the Pope’s health is, somewhat inexplicably, declining. I believe that this is the Providence of God, bringing his pontificate to an end, according to the timing God has decided. The tribulation is about to begin, and it is not the role of Pope Benedict to guide the Church at that time. We will have a new Pope sometime in 2012, perhaps early in the year.
More on this topic in my ebooklet:
The Future and the Popes
by
Ronald L. Conte Jr.
Roman Catholic theologian and Bible translator
you also said that the warning should have happened at least three times in the last three years.
why should anything you say be taken seriously?
Eschatology, as a field, is generally speculative. And theology in general — apart from particular magisterial doctrines — is fallible and also somewhat speculative. So errors in theology or in eschatology do not indicate that a body of work should be rejected. We should expect that any body of work in any area of theology will contain some errors, and also perhaps some insights that are of value to the faithful.
Your prediction of Pope Benedict XVI is quite impressive and I checked it on the Internet Archive : Wayback Machine of your web site Catholic Planet. Where I think your eschatology goes astray is when you try to put dates on events that have no foundation in Tradition and Scipture. This is when your eschatology falls more into the category of futurology.
Oh! I did not know that, Thanks for the information!. Anyway 2016 is also 100 years since Fatima, if we remember that the apparitions of the angel began in 1916. Greetings and thanks for answering.