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The Pope will die within a year: Vatican 'assassination fears' revealed
Telegraph ^ | February 10, 2012 | Nick Squires

Posted on 02/10/2012 8:08:21 AM PST by NYer

The sensational prediction was allegedly made by Cardinal Paolo Romeo, the archbishop of Palermo in Sicily, on a recent visit to China.

Cardinal Romeo reportedly made the startling prediction of the Pope's death during a trip to China in November 2011.

He seemed so sure of the fact that the people he spoke with, including Italian businessmen and Chinese representatives of the Catholic Church, were convinced that he was talking about an assassination attempt.

They were so alarmed by his remarks that they reported them back to the Vatican.

The extraordinary comments were written up in a top-secret report, dated Dec 30, 2011, and delivered to the Pope by a senior cardinal, Dario Castrillon Hoyos, a Colombian, in January.

The Vatican has reportedly opened an investigation into the claims.

The report was written in German, apparently to limit the number of people within the Vatican who would understand it if it was inadvertently leaked.

It warns of a "Mordkomplott" – death plot – against Benedict.

The story was broken on Friday by an Italian daily, Il Fatto Quotidiano, with the headline "Plot against the Pope – he will die within 12 months".

The newspaper, which has a reputation for scoops, published a page from the confidential report.

"During his talks in China, Cardinal Romeo predicted the death of Benedict XVI within 12 months. His remarks were expressed with such certainty and resolution that the people he was speaking to thought, with a sense of alarm, that an attack on the Pope's life was being planned," the paper reported.


(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Catholic; Current Events; Ministry/Outreach; Religion & Culture
KEYWORDS: assassination
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To: Lazlo in PA
I still have may doubts surrounding the death of Pope John Paul I in 1978.

I didn't believe he died of natural causes back in '78 and still don't. The more that comes out, the more suspicion falls on politics and the powers that be.

21 posted on 02/10/2012 8:50:47 AM PST by bgill (Romney & Obama are both ineligible. A non-NBC GOP prez shuts down all ?s on Obama's admin)
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To: redgolum
So who did he make so mad?

The devil.

Because he is restoring the Church.

22 posted on 02/10/2012 8:52:20 AM PST by Brian Kopp DPM
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To: redgolum
Thanks so much for that information. You can also pray for Pope Benedict here on FR. Continue to Pray for Pope Benedict [Ecumenical]
23 posted on 02/10/2012 9:01:07 AM PST by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: mrsadams

There is a reason they did that episode. There is some evidence floating around now to show the Pontiff didn’t just die in his sleep. I tend to agree with it.


24 posted on 02/10/2012 9:07:50 AM PST by Lazlo in PA (Now living in a newly minted Red State.)
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To: NYer

Somewhere I’ve read that the Vatican has called this “nonsense.” I’ll have to try and find that later.


25 posted on 02/10/2012 9:13:54 AM PST by SumProVita (Cogito, ergo...Sum Pro Vita. (Modified Decartes))
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To: Salvation
For the record: Italian media in a frenzy - bizarre plot rumors. Lombardi: "Madness"
Update: Content
Almost all Italian online media are in a frenzy tonight about a letter to be revealed in one of Italy's largest national dailies, Il Fatto Quotidiano.

We post the following for the record (from Corriere della Sera):
Milan - "Vatican, plots and intrigues. A plot against the Pope, he will die in the next 12 months" This is the title in the first page of Il Fatto Quotidiano in its February 10 edition.

Written in German - The news would have been given in a letter handed by Cardinal Castrillon to Benedict XVI. Included in the note, a report of a conversation [in a trip to China in November 2011] of the Archbishop of Palermo, [Cardinal] Romeo, in which he affirms that the Holy Father is in great risk and that an attack is feared within 12 months. The document is dated from December 30 2011, but it was given to the pope in January 2012. ... Romeo would have also spoken of the probable successor and indicated [Cardinal] Scola, Archbishop of Milan. The author of the article is journalist Marco Lillo. The director of Il Fatto Quotidiano, Antonio Padellaro, has said that the document will be published in its entirety in the paper. ... Soon afterwards, the reply of the Vatican arrived through Father Federico Lombardi, spokesman of the Holy See: "These are clearly ravings, which are not at all taken seriously. This is madness."

We expect the actual text of the letter, whose authenticity has not been confirmed, to be published by Il Fatto Quotidiano and the eventual written response by the Holy See Press Office and by the Archdiocese of Palermo in the morning.

Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos, president emeritus of the Pontifical Commission Ecclesia Dei, was received in private audience by the Pope on January 13.

Update (0900 GMT): A translation of the text of the unsigned document.

It is a report on Cardinal Romeo's visit to Beijing in November 2011 and his words with his intelocutors, (in the Chinese government or in the Patriotic Association?), and, according to Il Fatto Quotidiano, the document's contents would have been written in German and delivered to the Pope by Cardinal Castrillón in January 2012.

The content itself, that is, that Cardinal Romeo visited Beijing and spoke in confidence to specific persons, does not sound implausible - only at the end the curious "prophecy" of Cardinal Romeo mentioned. (Source: Il Fatto Quotidiano - Tip: Papa Ratzinger blog).
Voyage to Beijing:

In November 2011, Cardinal Romeo arrived on a tourist visa in Beijing, where, in fact, he did not meet any personality of the Catholic Church in China, but rather Italian businessmen, who live or work in Beijing, and some Chinese interlocutors. In Beijing, Cardinal Romeo declared to have been personally sent by Pope Benedict XVI to move forward, or rather, to follow up with, the conversations launched by Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos in China in March 2010. He also claimed to be the interlocutor designated by the Pope to be in charge, from now on, of the matters between China and the Vatican.


In a confidential conversation, Cardinal Romeo informed his interlocutors in China of having taken care, during his activity in the diplomatic Service of the Holy See, of the papal representation in the Philippines, of contacts with the Clandestine RKK [Roman Catholic Church, in abbreviation in the German original], and of being, due to this experience of his, the appropriate interlocutor to take care of the questions between China and the Vatican. He also declared to have been, between 1990 and 1999, the Apostolic Nuncio in Colombia and to have collaborated, precisely in that period, with Cardinal Castrillon. Cardinal Romeo surprised his interlocutors in Beijing by informing them that he - Romeo - formed, along with the the Holy Father - Pope Benedict XVI - and Cardinal Scola a troika. For the most important matters, therefore, the Holy Father would consult him - Romeo - and Scola.

Cardinal Romeo was told by the Chinese side the following: many Cardinals have visited China, but the most relevant visit in the relations between China and the Vatican was the one by Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos in March 2010.

STRETTAMENTE CONFIDENZIALE 30.12.2011

Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone:

Cardinal Romeo harshly criticized Pope Benedict XVI, because he was concerned mostly with the liturgy, neglecting "current affairs", entrusted by Pope Benedict XVI to Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of State of the Roman Catholic Church. The relationship between Pope Benedict XVI and his Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, was very conflictive. In an atmosphere of confidentiality, Cardinal Romeo mentioned that Pope Benedict XVI litterally hated Tarcidio Bertone and would replace him willingly with another Cardinal. Romeo added, however, that there was not another candidate suited to occupy this position and that for this Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone would continue to fulfill his job.

Also the relationship between the Secretary of State and Cardinal Scola was untoward and troubled.

Succession of Pope Benedict XVI:

The Holy Father was secretly taking care of his succession and had already chosen Cardinal Scola as a suitable candidate, because he is closer to his personality. Slowly but surely, he was thus preparing him and shaping him to fill the position of Pope.

On the initiative of the Holy Father - thus said Romeo - Cardinal Scola was transferred from Venice to Milan in order to prepare his Papacy from there calmly. Cardinal Romeo continued to surprise his interlocutors in China by feeding them rumors.

Confidently, as if he knew it in detail, Cardinal Romeo announced that the Holy Father would have only 12 months to live. During his conversations in China, he prophesized the death of Pope Benedict XVI within the following 12 months. The declarations of the Cardinal have been leaked, by a person probably informed of a serious criminal plot, with such certainty and firmness, that his interlocutors in China thought, frightfully, that an attack against the Holy Father is in the works. Cardinal Romeo seemed sure of himself and could not imagine that the declarations made in this round of secret conversations could be relayed by third parties to the Vatican.

Also sure of himself, Romeo prophesized that it seemed at the moment certain, even though still secret, that the successor of Pope Benedict XVI would be in any event a candidate of Italian origin. As described before, Cardinal Romeo emphasized that following the death of Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Scola will be elected Pope. Also Scola had important enemies in the Vatican.

26 posted on 02/10/2012 9:23:04 AM PST by Brian Kopp DPM
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To: Lazlo in PA

Sonds like the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith needs to inquire into Cardinal Romeo


27 posted on 02/10/2012 9:32:08 AM PST by Oztrich Boy
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To: NYer

OH BOY are we going have ending like Godfather 3 LOL!


28 posted on 02/10/2012 9:33:18 AM PST by SevenofNine (We are Freepers, all your media belong to us ,resistance is futile)
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To: Lazlo in PA

If you ever seen Godfather 3 you know how thing works out it better with no witnesses RIGHT????


29 posted on 02/10/2012 9:34:25 AM PST by SevenofNine (We are Freepers, all your media belong to us ,resistance is futile)
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To: SevenofNine
No. Actually you are going to have an ending like Revelation, Chapters 17 and 18.

NOT "LOL!"

30 posted on 02/10/2012 9:36:56 AM PST by smvoice (Better Buck up, Buttercup. The wailing and gnashing are for an eternity..)
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To: smvoice

Well it is Italy so I think more of Godfather 3


31 posted on 02/10/2012 9:40:07 AM PST by SevenofNine (We are Freepers, all your media belong to us ,resistance is futile)
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To: Peter from Rutland

No, Nostradamus did not predict the current pope would be the last. The prophecy this usually refers to is St. Malachy. The NEXT TO LAST pope on St. Malachy’s list would correspond to Pope Benedict, but there’s nothing to suppose that his list was meant to be exhaustive. THE LAST POPE on St. Malachy’s list is a spurious addition, over two hundred years’s later, and in no way indicates that there aren’t dozens or even hundreds of popes between “the Glory of the Olives,” which corresponds to Benedict and “Peter the Roman.”


32 posted on 02/10/2012 9:51:21 AM PST by dangus
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To: Samogon

Paolo is Paul. Put a sweater on; you’re acting like a 12-year-old.


33 posted on 02/10/2012 9:52:14 AM PST by dangus
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To: Dr. Brian Kopp

Bertone is already on the way out, due to his age, 77. According to Catholic-hierarchy.org, the only older Cardinals who haven’t retired are the archbishop of Cologne /Koln, the vatican archivist, and a basilica archpriest. Now, when he leaves, however, the gossip rags can proclaim, “A-ha! We told you Benedict hated him!”


34 posted on 02/10/2012 10:01:56 AM PST by dangus
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To: dangus

Keep your snot to yourself. I am well aware that Paolo means Paul. Are you aware of a remote possibility that Cardinal Romeo may become the next Pope? And Popes usually assume new names, keeping the surnames? Don’t bother answering, such struggle may be beyond your mental capacity.


35 posted on 02/10/2012 10:09:08 AM PST by Samogon (Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something. - Plato)
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To: Peter from Rutland

St. Malachy, actually. Pretty spooky stuff.

Peter the Roman is the last (and next) Pope.

It’ll be interesting.

It’s funny, because in Ezekiel it talks about a war in Israel where God’s own angels shield Israel from harm, while the army from the North, spoiling to take a great plunder, dies on horseback in the mountains to the North.

After this brief war, the Israelis use the fuel from the weapons they recover to ‘warm’ them for 7 years.

Russian and Iran share a border. Do we currently have a President that would fail to retaliate were the US struck with nuclear missiles? I think you chances are even money, actually.

In end times prophecies, almost no mention of the west is made, except to say the coast lands are all destroyed.

It wouldn’t surprise me in the least, and it is God’s general mode, that he sets Israel up against impossible odds, and then to show Israel that “I am the Lord”, he defeats Israel’s enemies, who once again return to God.


36 posted on 02/10/2012 10:15:44 AM PST by RinaseaofDs (Does beheading qualify as 'breaking my back', in the Jeffersonian sense of the expression?)
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To: Peter from Rutland

Nostradamus = occult

Avoid it.


37 posted on 02/10/2012 10:30:55 AM PST by SumProVita (Cogito, ergo...Sum Pro Vita. (Modified Decartes))
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To: Peter from Rutland

Not only Nostradamus, but several Popes going back centuries including the recently departed Pope John Paul, said that the next Pope in line after our current Pope will be in league with the Anti-Christ...that may be why Nostradamus said our current one would be the last Pope...the last “real” Pope. The next one will be a false prophet, probably heading up or organizing a one world religion for the Anti-Christ. Time is short...”Let every person work out their own salvation in fear and trembling”...Can’t remember what verse, but it’s just one of many that come to mind about the last days. It’s something we should all give great thought to because when we die we are all by ourselves before God and must give an account for our lives. Whether we believe in him or not. Some people are going to have one hell of a rude awakening. I hope I’m not one of them.


38 posted on 02/10/2012 10:37:58 AM PST by Rainwave (Growing more curmudgeony by the hour)
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To: Samogon

A few points:

1) Cardinal Romeo is eligible to be pope, but as a 73-year-old who’s still in a backwater, he’s hardly on anyone’s list of papabile, and shooting his mouth to Chicoms about the Pope being assassinated and diving into Italian gossip rags didn’t exactly earn his any positive attention.

2) Yes, Popes take new names. But then why does a name like “Paolo Romeo” get you all goose-pimply.

3) Fortune-telling is for basic-cable slack-jaws. tabloid papers and snake-charming hicks. There’s plenty of Catholic prophesying out there (St John Bosco, Fatima, etc.), but none of it having much to fortune-telling.

Grow up.


39 posted on 02/10/2012 12:44:18 PM PST by dangus
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To: dangus
Already grown, wish you likewise.
Comparing gossips and childish conspiracy theories to the Prophesy of St. Malachy is immature, to say the list - the prophecy was remarkably accurate to the date. As of “papability”, nobody really knows what are the chances of Romeo - remember 0bama in 2006-2007? Who would have thunk?!
The name Romeo could be significant, or could mean nothing, time will tell, but it certainly rang the bell in me.
40 posted on 02/10/2012 12:54:58 PM PST by Samogon (Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something. - Plato)
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