Papal prophecies

From NEWSMAX:

Eerie Prophecies Predicted Benedict XVI

When Cardinal Ratzinger was chosen to be the next pope, NewsMax did a Web search for "Benedict XVI" and we were surprised how many prophecies – some rather eerie and apocalyptic – had predicted the name this new pope would take.

The Daily News reported Tuesday that the Irish betting house Paddy Power had three odds-on-favorites: Ratzinger would be elected; it would take three days; and he would take the name Benedict XVI.
Two out of three isn’t bad. Chalk it up to the luck of the Irish – or a little Internet prophecy research.
One internet Web site, CatholicPlanet.com, has published a book by Ronald Conte entitled "The Bible and the Future of the World."
The site says it reveals, from a Catholic viewpoint in Sacred Scripture, God's plan for the future of the Church and the world.

"Many specific and startling predictions of events in the near and distant future are revealed," the site says.
The author claims that in 2009 or 2010, "Pope Benedict XVI" will die and be replaced by the last pope.
The selection of this pope seems to be intertwined with an "end times” biblical view.

On the site prophecies.us, a discussion in January 2005 of who might succeed Pope John Paul II had a post by "Dan," who predicted that on February 22, 2005 a new pope "will appear, and will call himself Pope Benedict XVI, the Pope of Peace, who will lead his church, all the faithful followers of the Lord Jesus Christ to their martyrdom, at the foot of the Cross that stands upon the Mount of Olives."
Dan addsed, "Whereupon the Monarch entering Israel, becomes Elijah, the gentile olive tree, and one of the two witnesses of Revelation 11.
"But Gloriae Olivae [The Glory of the Olives] will tear down the walls of the Vatican, auctioning off all the objects within, in order to feed and enlighten those in the 3rd World who have not yet heard the Gospel according to Christ, nor the prophet Pope's message that accompanies it.
"And he will convert hundreds of millions, for the Hand and Spirit of the Lord is upon him to fulfill His Will, for the sake of the Gentile nations, for which innocent must be shed, or there is no salvation for them."
Dan's reference to the The Glory of the Olives comes from St. Malachy.
As Dr. H.T. Spence relates in his "The Death of the Pope":
"An Irish bishop, Malachy in 1139 he went to Rome to give an account of the affairs of his diocese to Pope Innocent II, who promised him two palliums for the metropolitan Sees of Armagh and Cashel.
"While at Rome, he supposedly received a strange vision of the future wherein was unfolded before him the long list of illustrious pontiffs who were to rule the Roman Catholic Church until the end of time.
"History tells us that Malachy gave his manuscript to Innocent II to console him in the midst of his tribulations, and that the document remained unnoticed in the Roman Archives until its discovery in 1590."
Interestingly, writing well before the news that Cardinal Ratzinger had been selected, Spence details the connection between Malachy's prophecy for this pope and why many predicted this pope would call himself "Benedict XVI."
"According to Malachy, the 267th pope is called 'Gloria Olivae,' or 'glory of the olive.' Traditionally, the olive branch has been associated with peace, but in both the Old and New Testaments, it also serves as an emblem for the Jews.
"Putting the two together, some commentators believe that the reign of this pope will be dedicated to peace. However, some believe that Malachy's description may instead refer to St. Benedict's sixth-century prophecy that a member of his order will lead the Church in its fight against evil just before the Apocalypse.
"The Benedictine Order is known by another name, Olivetans.
"Those mystic observers in Rome believe if this is true, the next pope will go by the name of Pope Benedict XVI, in imitation of Saint Benedict and Pope Benedict XV. Benedict XV was a pope obsessed with peace: he sought peace and spoke of peace and wrote documents seeking peace."