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Pope Francis died on April 21st, 2025, and immediately, many news outlets—including English ones, even the Catholic English publication Daily Mail—brought up an old prophecy that is around 1,000 years old. It's known as the “Prophecy of the Popes.” There’s even a Wikipedia article dedicated to this prophecy. Just search “Prophecy of the Popes” and read what it’s about.
According to this prophecy, the next Pope after Francis will be the last Pope on earth, and that we are living on the brink of the end of the age. Based on their calculations, this will happen two years into his reign, which is easy to estimate as the year 2027.
But is this really so? Will Christ truly return for His Church? Was there really a prophecy about the year 2027? What kind of prophecy is this?
The prophecy was written by a monk named Malachy—not the Malachi from the Old Testament, but an 11th-century archbishop from the city of Armagh, an Irish monk named Malachy. He supposedly had a mystical vision. So this prophecy is already 800–900 years old. In it, he saw all future Roman popes, starting from Celestine II and ending with the final pope, as he claimed. The last pope would be called Peter the Roman.
In total, there are 112 Roman popes in the list he saw. And for each one, there is a short note—what he will do or what will accompany his reign. So, 112 popes, each with a symbolic description.
What exactly is written in this prophecy? Again—112 symbolic phrases, each describing the papacy of a particular pope, and the events that will occur during his reign. Not only the number of popes, but also the happenings of their times. Starting with Celestine—there will be 112 popes in total. The 113th will be the last, and then the end will come.
It clearly states that the last pope will be called Peter the Roman. And after him, the end will come.
What does it say about the time of Peter the Roman? Again: each pope has something written about what will happen during his era. Next to Peter the Roman, it says:
“Peter the Roman, who will shepherd his flock amid many tribulations, after which the city of seven hills shall be destroyed, and the dreadful Judge will judge His people.”
The end.
The city of seven hills—Rome—will be destroyed, and the dreadful Judge—Jesus Christ—will come, and the end will arrive.
That is how the prophecy describes it. Another interesting detail: Malachy says that halfway through, that is, living in the 11th century, he noted that in the middle there would be a Pope Sixtus—marking the halfway point of the papal succession. And when Pope Sixtus appears, that would be the halfway mark of all papal reigns, and after that, the end will follow.
Let me explain. This happened in 1585. And they say: there was a Pope Sixtus. And before him and after him — there’s half. That is, 422 years. If you add 422 years to 1585, you get the year 2027. So, from the prophecy to Sixtus, to the end of the age — it’s Sixtus who marks the midpoint. Thus, they take 2027, as the interpreters suggest, and the last Pope will rule for only two years — again pointing to the year 2027.
There’s another interesting fact — supposedly, in the Vatican, there’s a wall in St. Peter’s Basilica where they place the names of each Pope. Like — Pope 1, Pope 2… and the wall is made in such a way that there’s only space for one more name. Now they will inscribe Francis, and after that, the wall ends. Meaning, the last Pope — as if it had been calculated when they built this cathedral 500 years ago — would be the final one, also according to the prophecy, with space left for just one more.
In the history of the Catholic Church — over 260 Popes — not one has taken the name Peter. Because according to Catholic tradition, when someone becomes Pope Peter, that truly will be the last Pope on earth.
That’s why, when new Popes are chosen, they often take names like John, John II, John Paul, Paul — many apostolic names. But never once in history has anyone taken the name Peter, because of the prophecy that Peter will be the final Pope. And we also see that this prophecy states that Peter the Roman will be the last.
So, no one has ever been named Peter. Peter — supposedly the last Pope on earth. After Francis died, a list appeared of 9–10 potential candidates for the next Pope. Who will the next Pope be?
Some are from Italy, some from the Philippines, one candidate is even from Africa, and one from America. There are many different candidates. Of course, we don’t know who the next Pope will be, what name he will take, or what his current name is — it’s all speculation.
But it’s worth noting that three of the nine leading contenders currently have the name Peter. This has alarmed many. They also say the frontrunner in the papal race is Pietro Parolin, who currently serves as the Vatican’s Secretary of State. He is considered one of the top favorites. His name is Peter — Pietro in Italian.
We don’t know who will be chosen, but three candidates bear the name Peter.
Could it really happen that the next Pope will be someone named Peter? This has never happened before in the 2,000-year history of the papacy.
They say that, according to the prophecy, once Peter becomes Pope, the Eternal City will be destroyed within two years, and the end of the world will follow. And this has sparked fear among many online — numerous videos have been made, many articles written about it. But are we really living two years away from the end of the world?
As Protestant Christians, how should we view a prophecy made by a Catholic monk in the 11th century? Can we believe in it? Or is it just a myth? How should we approach this?
First of all, the Catholic Church does not officially recognize this prophecy. Many Catholics believe in it, some priests do too, but officially, the Catholic Church considers the Prophecy of Malachy to be a forgery. It does not believe in Malachy’s prophecy. That’s the first thing we need to understand: the Catholic Church does not officially expect the end of the world in 2027 — it’s simply speculation, rumors, and assumptions.
Secondly — a new Pope has not yet been chosen. There is no guarantee that the next Pope will be named Peter. And even if his real name is Peter, he might choose a different papal name, such as John IV or Paul V — there’s no certainty.
So, we have a couple of weeks. In two weeks, we’ll really find out: will someone named Peter be chosen for the first time in history? When a man is chosen, and if his name is Peter—or he chooses the name Peter—then we can talk. That will be something much more serious.
There are several Christian thinkers who have interpreted this prophecy. What do they say?
They say that even if the prophecy is true, it doesn’t mean it’s literal. Meaning, we can’t give it a definitive interpretation. It simply says there will be an end in Rome. Some suggest this theory: Pope Francis was very liberal. He allowed transgender people to be baptized, allowed the blessing of same-sex couples, permitted gay men to be priests under certain conditions. In many ways, he was the most liberal Pope in history. One could even call him a socialist, maybe even a communist: he supported climate change initiatives, financial redistribution, opening borders to migrants. He had powerful backers behind him.
But out of the nine papal candidates, five—especially the one from the Philippines—have already said they plan to introduce new laws right away: full recognition of same-sex marriages, blessings for such couples, and so on. Total freedom, as they call it—full equality. And it’s not just one who promises this, it’s five of them. There is one American conservative who says he will not support such changes, and some candidates remain silent. As for the Peter—Parolin—he remains quiet. He seems to support Francis’s doctrine, but hasn’t expressed himself strongly on this issue.
So, if the next Pope turns out to be an absolute liberal who implements all of this lawlessness, it might well bring about the end of the Catholic Church as Malachy prophesied.
Because they’re already halfway there—just a little more… But if this begins to happen on a mass scale, then I think a major split could occur within the Catholic Church. Americans, especially in Texas, are strongly against all of this. If a Pope comes along who tries to force priests to bless such unions, many conservative clergy in Latin America, Europe, and Ukraine won’t accept it. A schism may begin, and the Catholic Church could collapse as a unified structure. In the Vatican—maybe the U.S. would break away, Latin America too. We don’t know what could happen over the next two years under the new Pope.
That’s why some suggest: even if this prophecy is accurate—we don’t really know what kind of “end” Malachy meant.
Because in recent years, the Catholic Church has adopted more liberal laws than ever before in its history.
Secondly: no one can predict the date of Christ’s Second Coming. Some people say, “We already know—it’s 2027.” But the Bible says that neither the angels nor the Son know the day. Jesus said this while He was on earth. So, I don’t think we’re supposed to calculate the date of the Second Coming.
I’m not calling people to live in fear or expect that 2027 will be the end of the world. I don’t know who will be chosen as Pope. If it’s Peter, and everyone starts saying the end is near—I still won’t agree that we can know the date of Christ’s return.
No one knows. God will never reveal it to anyone. No matter how much people try to calculate it. But this is a very interesting time. In the next two weeks, we may find out something.
Once again: if the new Pope is from Rome—as this candidate is, because the prophecy speaks of “Peter the Roman”—and he’s from Rome, and this is Pietro Parolin—his candidacy fits the description almost exactly—and if he takes the name Peter as Pope... well, then we can expect something. Something may happen: changes within the Church, awakenings, movements, upheavals... We don’t know. Time will tell.
And while we await these events, let’s simply pray with open hearts—asking God for wisdom to live the life of a true Christian, for as many days or years as we may have on this earth.
