UPDATE: What's Going On At The Vatican?

A Giant Sequoia, one of the largest living beings on 
Earth, possibly 3000 years old.  Sequoia National 
Park, Sierra Nevada Mountains, California 

     I have published several posts about the Vatican and know that many of my readers are very interested in this topic.  What follows below is a short update on what has been happening during the last few weeks regarding the Vatican, officially and unofficially.

          Since the end of 2011, there has been widespread speculation in the media, both MSM and Alternative, that Pope Benedict XVI would  resign early this year and, even more specifically, during this month.  He turned 85 on April 16th and marked seven years as pope on April 19th.  He is increasingly frail, now moving about with a cane or on a moving platform.

     The Pope's birthday celebration at the Vatican was an emotional event for him featuring Bavarian music and dancing as well as the attendance by his older brother, Monsignor Georg Ratzinger, and many others from his homeland of Bavaria and greater Germany.  His message both in his homily and "ad lib" remarks clearly seemed to squash resignation rumors, perhaps directed most pointedly at the College of Cardinals.

     The continuing scandals over banking practices, pedophilia  cover ups, sexual abuse, and leaks to the Italian media about political bickering within the Vatican threaten to permanently mar his legacy.  The Los Angeles Times reported on a 2002 study which showed that of 10,667 individual charges against 4392 priests,

A Second Vatican in Jerusalem's Old City? Part II: The Israel-Vatican Relationship Twenty Years Later

A Place of Beauty And Serenity
Mission San Francisco Solano founded  in 1823 by Franciscan
Padre Jose Altimira in Sonoma, CA

    

    As often happens when I write a post, I find myself totally involved in the research, the reading of excellent blogs and sites related to my subject and am slow to begin writing.  I apologize, therefore, for the delay in publishing Part II of this post!

     Like North Americans, the vast majority of Israeli citizens are basically "asleep" with respect to how our planet is Ruled and the machinations of shadow governments and
secret societies that influence our everyday lives.  Israelis, too, rely heavily upon the Main Stream Media (MSM) for their news and thus learn only what The Powers That Be choose for them to know.

A Second Vatican in Jerusalem's Old City? Part I: Old City History And Catholic Presence

Our Beautiful Earth - Another Maui Sunset

     My reaction when first reading about the secret agreements among the Vatican, Muslims, and Israelis concerning  oversight of Jerusalem by the Vatican was one of total disbelief!
      But with little effort, I learned that plans for a One-World-Religion have been in place for a long, long time, at the very least
since the 1920's when the Vatican was built in Rome.  It is not by chance that the layout of the Vatican established in 1929 is so similar to the layout of the Old City of Jerusalem.
   The secret talks and agreements mentioned above began in the early 1990's and are ongoing in the shadows today.  What is the plan? What are the role and motivation of the Vatican?
     It is difficult to understand the complex situation in the Middle East or Jerusalem, specifically, without at least a rudimentary historical understanding of the region.  In Part I of this article, I have condensed several thousand years of history into a few manageable paragraphs. 
     As with all things related to the Middle East, the facts are often tainted by the viewpoint of whoever is writing or speaking.  Discernment is certainly required. Therefore, I have relied upon Wikipedia and some other more "neutral" sources for historical background.

Headlines: Is The Vatican In Critical Condition?

Our Beautiful Earth
Tulum Mayan Ruins, Mexico 

     The stories leaking from the Vatican via Alternative News are alarming.  Reports of internal strife within the hierachy of the Roman Catholic Church hint of inner battles among political factions, financial chicanery including the laundering of drug money, and the probable retirement of Pope Benedict XVI within the next few weeks.

     Is St. Malachy's "Prophecy of The Popes" beginning to come true?  First published in 1595 by Arnold de Wyon, a Benedictine historian, the prophecy predicts that the next pope (after Pope Benedict XVI) will be the final pontiff.   Among the resulting apocalyptic events will be the rise of a False Prophet.   The Book of Revelation warns us that the False Prophet will lead the religious communities of the world to embrace a political leader who will be the Antichrist.

     Petrus Romanus: The Final Pope Is Here by Thomas Horn and Cris D. Putnam is a "must read".  This 600 page tome with more than 800 footnotes and references will be released on April 15, 2012, by Amazon and Barnes & Noble.  The exquisite research effort of Horn and Putnam details the history of Roman Catholicism and the Vatican in relation to the Prophecy of The Popes leading to the current crisis today and the implications for the future.