POPE PREPARES FOR DEATH

DEATH - 4-2-05
2:37 p.m. EST
age 84

compiled by Dee Finney

Pope John Paul II

Karol Wojtyla, who is now Pope John Paul, was born in Wadowice, Poland. on May 18,1920. Photo of Karol Wojtyla at his ordination on 1946. He became the Archbishop of Krakow on December 30, 1963.On October 16, 1978, Archbishop Wojtyla became the first non-Italian pope since HadrianVI (1522-3). Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla was elected successor to Pope John Paul I on Oct. 16, 1978, the 264th pope of the Catholic Church, and took the name John  Paul II. He took the name of his predecessors (John, Paul, John Paul) to emphasis his desire to continue the reforms of the Council. Pope John Paul II is the most traveled pope in the history of the papacy, having visited nearly every country in the world which would receive him. It is his custom to kiss the earth of each land he visits as soon as he puts his feet to that country. At age 61 he suffered serious wounds during an assassination attempt. Biography

04/15/03 Friends, Tonight I heard from Native American shaman Nestor NightOwl. Spirit had directed him to call me and share a vision he received a week ago. In this vision the Pope (John Paul II), dressed in his formal stiff gold-brocaded altar vestments, approached him, and called Nestor by his birth name, which he has not heard in 20 years. Nestor has never been Catholic, and was surprised by the Pope's choosing him to visit (astrally). Nestor said the Pope was a clear as day, that he could see every fine detail of his face, to the level of the hairs on his nose. The Pope gave Nestor to understand that he (the Pope) will be dead shortly. Nestor got that it would be in weeks, not months from now. The Pope stated that he has come to a new understanding of things, and that many ideas he has held for a lifetime are wrong: such things as the existence of a Hell or Purgatory. Pope John Paul said he was ready to let go of this life. Pope John Paul told Nestor that the prophecies given by the figure the faithful know as the Virgin Mary are about to come to pass: those she gave to simple peasant children decades ago: the Prophecies of Fatima, Portugal, of Lourdes, France, of Medjugorje, Bosnia-Herzogovina. These prophecies have to do with End Times events, and resemble what in modern metaphysical lore are called Earth Changes; and what the Hopi Prophecies call the Times of Tribulation. The Pope did not put an exact date on when these Prophecies will manifest, but Nestor got the impression that it would be rather soon. Nestor felt that these were connected with current world events unfolding, such as the War on Iraq, etc. The Pope said that these unfortunate events must play themselves out, that events have to unfold as they are set; that they will usher in an era such as the world has never experienced before. Nestor got the strong impression that out of the world-events tumult would arise the circumstance in which the presence of the Star Visitors here would become so manifest that even the most hardened scoffer could no longer deny their reality. And that such would bring in an era unlike any previously known. The Pope also told Nestor that people have to pay attention now to the slightest intuition or other psychic indication they get, that it will be important to do so. Nestor was reminded of indicator signs which a Navajo Elder passed on to him, as told by the Old Ones. These signs that the Times of Tribulation are upon us will be three: 1) when one hears a low moaning outside, 2) when there is a fine red dust in the air, and 3) when a person while walking feels themself tilting some to one side. Nestor believes that he will be drawn back soon to the U.S. Mainland from Kauaii, and hopes to be able to attend and speak at the Star Knowledge Conference May 23-25 in Colorado Springs. He feels that by that date "big things will be happening." Nestor was puzzled as to why he was directed to bring his vision to me. But I was not. For in so doing, his vision will be spread areound the world. And since I and my associate, investigator Paola Harris, are friends with Monsignor Corrado Balducci, the Vatican's tacit point-man on Star Visitor matters, that Nestor's message would be shared with him as well. I thanked Nestor for sharing his vision and message, and secured his permission to share them publicly. And so you have this guidance to add to what vision he previously got about May, as well as the predictions of Dr. Leo Sprinkle's Guides, John Kimmey, and Marian MacNeil's Star Visitor contact "Neuman". We are in for some changing times, and apparently not far off. Richard Boylan, Ph.D.

1-31-03 - VISION - I was already awake and thinking about the dream I had just had, and suddenly had a vision of a newspaper front page. The headline was:  POPE PREPARES FOR DEATH AND SMOOTH TRANSITION Under the headline was a photo and article about the Pope preparing for his own death. The photo was of the Pope sitting on his throne with his papal guards on both sides of him.

PHOTOS OF POPES ON THE THRONE POPE JOHN PAUL II - POPE PIUS XII The Papal Tiara is a crown symbolizing the threefold authority of the Supreme Pontiff: Universal Pastor, Universal Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction and the Temporal Power (bottom). Of this last, only the Vatican City State remains from the papal territories, which in past ages secured the autonomy of the Vicar of Christ from the princes of this world. The triple tiara can also be understood to have a spiritual interpretation, the three-fold office of Christ, Who is Priest, Prophet and King. The Lord communicated these offices to the Apostles, and in a particular way to Peter, that they could sanctify, teach and govern in His name and by His authority (Mt 16:13-18, Mt 18:18, Mt 28:18-20, Lk 22:31-32, John 21:15-17 (See below) Pope Paul VI was the last pontiff to wear the papal tiara. At the end of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Paul VI descended the steps of the papal throne in St Peter's Basilica and laid the tiara on the altar in a dramatic gesture of humility and as a sign of the renunciation of human glory and power in keeping with the renewed spirit of the Second Vatican Council. This last tiara was then given to benefit the poor, but remains as a symbol in the papal crest." Photos of the Triple Tiara The throne is the chair of state or the seat of a high dignitary. The throne was at first a stool or bench and later became an ornate armchair, usually raised on a dais and surmounted by a canopy. Often lavishly decorated, thrones have been made of a variety of materials, including wood, stone, ivory, and precious metals. Ancient Greek thrones were simple in form, with rectangular or curving legs and rosette adornments; they were adapted by the Etruscans, who made them more comfortable, and also by the Romans, who made them more ornate. The thrones of the East were usually more elaborate and fantastic in conception than those of Europe. In ancient times the Indian throne was a combined throne-altar, serving both a royal and a religious purpose. Thrones of the Renaissance in Europe were heavily ornamented with precious stones. Napoleon’s throne was a gilded chair displaying eagles, lions, and other symbols. The throne of Great Britain is an oak chair in the House of Lords. At St. Peter’s in Rome is the bronze papal throne designed by Bernini. The throne of a bishop is called a cathedra and the church in which it is maintained is thus a cathedral. Matthew 16:13-18 : When Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" [14] They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." [15] He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" [16] Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." [17] Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. [18] And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. Matthew 18:18: Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Matthew 28:18-20 : Then Jesus approached and said to them, "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. [19] Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." Luke 22:31-32 : "Simon, Simon, behold Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, [32] but I have prayed that your own faith may not fail; and once you have turned back, you must strengthen your brothers." John 21:15-17 : When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." He said to him, "Feed my lambs." [16] He then said to him a second time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord, you know that I love you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." [17] He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, "Do you love me?" and he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." (Jesus) said to him, "Feed my sheep."

On the Feast of the Epiphany, Pope John Paul II consecrates priests to the episcopate. Here the Pope vests a new bishop with the mitre. His Holiness wears a pontiff-design gold mitre, the pallium, the papal ring, and gold chasuble. Two croziers can be partially seen in the background. The Pope's master of ceremonies, Bishop Piero Marini, then a monsignor, is seen in violet cassock and Vatican-style surplice. The mitre is the common headdress of bishops, worn at liturgical functions. It is either precious, golden (orphreyed), or simple (simplex).The precious mitre is worn by celebrants, the simple by concelebrants, and the golden by the celebrant at an ordination. All cardinals wear a damasked mitre (simplex) in presence of the Pope. It is very tall, and is made of layered white damask silk. The origins of the mitre can be found in pre-Christian Greece in the cap worn by Greek athletes. The infulae, or ribbons, of the mitre actually pre-date the hat. These ribbons would be tied around the forehead, and the winner of an athletic competition would be presented with a laurel wreath, which circled the head. The hat was made taller and more ornamented by the early Christian hierarchy, and became papal vesture during the time of Pope Leo VIII. It wasn't universally allowed to bishops until the 11th century. More photos The Pope's day begins while Rome still sleeps, around 5:30, and does not end until 11:30 p.m. By 6:15 he is in his private chapel, praying and meditating before its altar, over which hangs a large bronze crucifix. Within sight is a copy of Poland's most cherished icon, the Black Virgin of Czestochowa, from whose image Poles historically drew strength as they battled against their oppressors. The testimony is universal that prayer, more than food or liquid, is the sustaining force of this Pope's life. He makes decisions "on his knees," says Monsignor Diarmuid Martin, secretary of the Vatican's Justice and Peace Commission. Sometimes John Paul will prostrate himself before the altar. At other times he will sit or kneel with eyes closed, his forehead cradled in his left hand, his face contorted intensely, as if in pain. At this time, too, he brings to his God the prayer requests of others. His prie-dieu, at the front center of the chapel, has a padded armrest. It lifts up, and underneath there is a small container for a couple of prayer books and a big stack of intentions, written on yellow sheets. Last month the stack was 200 sheets thick, and the one on the top had nine different names written on it, including that of a 17-year-old Italian boy with cancer, an Italian mother of three who was very sick and an American child. The prayers nowadays may also concern the decline of his own health, the result of age and the lingering effects of wounds suffered in the 1981 assassination attempt by Mehmet Ali Agca. John Paul has written an apostolic letter on the supernatural value of human suffering in which he teaches, "Each man, in his suffering, can also become a sharer in the redemptive suffering of Christ." Though he does not mortify his flesh with a hair shirt - as Paul VI sometimes did - he clearly sees his own physical ailments in this light. "The Pope's youth wasn't happy," says Father Joseph Vandrisse, a former French missionary in the Middle East who now covers the Vatican for the French daily Le Figaro. Wojtyla lost his mother when he was nine, his father when he was 21, and his only brother, a doctor, died during a scarlet-fever epidemic. "He has meditated a lot on the meaning of suffering. Now that he is weakened in a world that is horrified by sickness and death, he thinks that the image of someone who is suffering is important for the church." To the sick whom he visits, the Pope has a request: "Pray for me. Pray for me." Still, his friend and confidant, Jean-Marie Cardinal Lustiger of Paris, advises the Pope's critics not to underestimate the aging Pontiff: "This is perhaps the most decisive moment of the whole pontificate." Says Navarro, the papal spokesman and confidant: "If you say, 'Holy Father, did you enjoy your lunch?' he will say yes. But if you ask him what he just ate, he couldn't tell you." John Paul is often too engrossed in talk and thought to pay attention to food. Amid intense conversation, he may push his plate away and fiddle with the cutlery, eyes closed, while concentrating on the speaker's words. He listens and responds. At lunch one day, some of the Pope's advisers started talking about the violence of the Serbs in Bosnia. The Pope interjected: "And the Croats - you think they're angels?" Fluent in eight languages, the Pope chooses his idiom to suit his dinner companions. Says a Vatican aide: "He listens, talks directly, asks questions, puts you at ease. After five minutes you forget you are talking to the Pope." For visiting bishops with problems to share, he can turn on the charm, singing and joking - although his humor runs more to irony and good-natured kidding. After the dissident Swiss theologian Hans Kung was censured for a book questioning papal infallibility, John Paul commented, without malice, "And I'm sure Kung wrote that infallibly." The Pope has two modes of decision making: quick and slow. On large strategic issues, he can be instantly decisive, since he has invariably thought through what he wants to do beforehand. But if he is unhappy with options proposed by the Curia on a tricky problem, he will put the issue aside for weeks or even months. When he brings up the problem again, startled aides have discovered, he will not have forgotten a detail. His aides attest that John Paul has immense powers of concentration and - his health problems notwithstanding - a virtually photographic memory for names and details. And with so much less time to do what he believes must be accomplished. The Pope, under strict orders from his physician, must take a half-hour after-lunch nap. After that he exercises by walking along the Apostolic Palace's rooftop terrace while reciting the rosary and reading his breviary. He chafes under the burden of his infirmities. His image has always been of the robust mountain climber, swimmer, skier, soccer goalkeeper. Once in the high Dolomites, the Pope, determined to reach a cross planted on a peak far ahead, walked so far that his aides became worn out and could go no farther. He agreed that all his staff could rest and wait for him, but he insisted that the fit and trim Joaquin Navarro continue with him. It took another three hours to reach the cross. The Pope was dressed in hiking togs - one of those rare moments when he has been seen publicly in mufti. On the way up, they passed a group of German hikers descending the slope. John Paul greeted the group briefly in German and walked on. When the tourists were about 30 yards down the mountain, Navarro heard one of the women shriek, "Gott im Himmel! It was the Pope!" John Paul was skiing as recently as March, 1994. But he will never ski again. He now has an artificial femur and must walk with a cane. "He doesn't know how to use it," says Navarro. "He was operated on the right hip and holds the cane in his left hand. The recovery is not as fast as hoped, because he didn't spend enough time in physiotherapy." When, impatiently, he tries to move without a cane, he often falls on a companion for support. The appearance of weakness has prompted rumor and speculation: bone cancer, Parkinson's disease, a series of small strokes. All are denied by the Vatican. The depth of the Pope's disappointment over Crotia was apparent when he visited the country on Sept. 10, 1994. He walked unsteadily and gasped for breath, leading to rumors that he might be near death. What may have troubled the Pope more than physical discomfort was a fear that his mission as priest and prophet would end prematurely. Five days later, John Paul summoned senior Curia officers to his summer retreat at Castel Gandolfo. "He was tired," said an official, "and obviously suffering with his hip." And then the Pope surprised his aides by declaring once again, "I have to go to Sarajevo. We must find some way to make these people stop killing each other." So much to do, so little time. More from 1994

From:  http://www.astrodatabank.com/NM/PopeJohnPaul.htm

Man who shot pope pardoned in Italy June 13, 2000 ROME -- Mehmet Ali Agca, the man who tried to assassinate Pope John Paul II in 1981, will be extradited to Turkey after Italy's president issued a pardon on Tuesday for the papal shooting. Agca will serve the remainder of a 10-year sentence in Turkey for the murder of newspaper editor Abdi Ipekci. He shot the pope after escaping from jail while being held on charges of murdering Ipekci and was later sentenced to death in absentia by his native country. A 1991 amnesty reduced the Turkish death sentence to 10 years in prison. "This morning the president of the republic signed the clemency decree for Mehmet Ali Agca, and simultaneously the Justice Minister signed an extradition decree which will send him back to Turkey," a spokesman for Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi said on Tuesday. The pope, who met Agca in prison, publicly forgave him three days after the May 13, 1981, shooting, which occurred as the pope rode in an open car across St. Peter's Square. Agca, now 43 years old, shot the pope point-blank and was captured immediately. Chief Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said John Paul was satisfied with Ciampi's action. "As you know, John Paul II immediately pardoned his attacker and for some time now the pope had told Italian authorities that he was in favor of an act of clemency if Italian law permitted it," Navarro-Valls said. "He has been insisting on this for some time. We are not surprised. We are very happy." Agca's attorneys reported that their client thanked the pope and the Vatican when told the news. "This is a dream. I cannot believe it," news reports quoted the gunman as saying in comments relayed by his lawyer. Pope credits miraculous recovery Hit in the abdomen, left hand and right arm, the pontiff was critically wounded in the 1981 assassination attempt. Doctors were able to save the pope's life largely because Agca's bullets missed any vital organs. The pope credits his survival to the intervention of the Virgin Mary of Fatima, Portugal. John Paul visited Fatima last month, revealing that the attempt on his life was the last of three secrets revealed to three Portuguese shepherd children who saw the Virgin's apparition in 1917. The other two secrets had been long since revealed, but the Vatican had held tightly to the third. The shooting occurred less than three years after John Paul ascended the papal throne. Agca has served more than 19 years of a life sentence. No proof of conspiracy Agca, a member of the militant right-wing Grey Wolves group in Turkey, gave several conflicting reasons through the years for his attack on the pope, but prosecutors were never able to prove that he had not acted alone. At a second trial after Agca's original conviction, prosecutors tried to link the attack to the growing democracy movement -- very much alive in Pope John Paul's native Poland at the time -- that would eventually lead to the downfall of communism. The pontiff was a staunch supporter of Poland's Solidarity union and is believed to have been instrumental in the chain of events that led to the Eastern Bloc's first freely elected government. The theory speculated that Bulgarian secret service agents had hired Agca on behalf of the Soviet Union. Prosecutor Rosario Priore, who investigated the alleged conspiracy, said that while he's convinced the whole truth has never come out, the pardon was "a wise decision." "It's the only possible act to take," he said. "You can't keep people in prison just to make them talk." But another prosecutor, Antonio Marini, said that Agca's extradition to Turkey "extinguishes the last hope of reaching the truth." The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

Pope John Paul II Crys Tears of Joy After Finding His Missing Hat by Elroy Willis VATICAN CITY (EAP) -- Amid the recent talk of Pope John Paul II stepping down come rumors of not only failing health, but of a failing memory as well. Most recently, he was seen bent over in frustration as he felt on top of his head and realized that he'd misplaced his hat. "I don't remember where I put my hat," he was recently heard mumbling to himself over and over as he wandered around looking for his favorite Holy Headwear. Papal aides say the Pope offered two days off with pay and promised to put in a good word to God for anyone who could locate his missing hat. "It was like a treasure hunt," said 42-year-old Joseph Castillo, Vatican chef, who found the hat in the back of a freezer behind a carton of peach sherbet. "I think maybe he snuck down to the kitchen to have a snack and for some reason he put his hat in the freezer. Or maybe someone was playing a joke on him," Castillo said. Overjoyed by the return of his hat, he broke down into tears and cried like a baby. Seen at left, wearing the missing hat and clutching a hankey, it's obvious that it was a very emotional experience for the aging Pope. "He hugged me and said 'God Bless You' over and over," Castillo said. "I'm looking forward to my two days off, and thank God that I was the one who found the Holy hat." Vatican officials say that they're relieved to have this missing hat incident over with. "We were worried that some Pope-Groupie might've stolen the hat," they said.

Sunday, September 28th, 2003 Pope sets stage for succession By LOS ANGELES TIMES Pope John Paul II appointed 31 new cardinals Sunday, enlarging the body that will produce his successor and further solidifying his conservative influence on the Roman Catholic Church and its powerful hierarchy. Pope John Paul II reads the names of new cardinals Sunday from the window of his Vatican study. (ASSOCIATED PRESS) John Paul, 83 and in poor health, will elevate the new cardinals, bestowing upon them their trademark scarlet birettas, on Oct. 21 in a ceremony known as a consistory. It will wrap up a week of celebrations marking the pontiff’s 25 years in office, one of the longest reigns in modern history. The men named Sunday will become members of the College of Cardinals. Those under the age of 80 are eligible to take part in the election — almost always from within their own ranks — of a new pope upon the death of a sitting pontiff. The new “princes of the Church,” as the cardinals are known, included only one U.S.prelate — Los Angeles-born Justin Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia — and one each from Mexico, Guatemala and Brazil. Six are Italians and one was appointed “in pectore,” or “close to the heart,” meaning his name will not be revealed because of religious persecution in his home nation. Rigali, 68, is considered a conservative who is loyal to the pope and his traditional doctrines, including staunch opposition to abortion.

Report: Pope's Health 'In a Bad Way' Pope John Paul II Is 'In a Bad Way,' Cardinal Ratzinger Tells German Magazine The Associated Press VATICAN CITY Sept. 30, 2003 — Ailing Pope John Paul II is "in a bad way," one of his closest advisers said in an interview published Tuesday, calling on the faithful to pray for him. An aide to Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, however, told The Associated Press that the comments in no way indicated John Paul's health had worsened in recent days. Instead, they reflected concern about John Paul's frailty, the aide said. The Polish-born pontiff, who was elected as pope in 1978, is 83 and suffers from Parkinson's disease. "He is in a bad way," Ratzinger told the German weekly Bunte, which said its correspondent spoke with him at the Vatican on Sept. 22. "We should pray for the pope." Those comments to some degree only confirm what's been obvious in John Paul's recent appearances, but also raised concerns the pope's health might have deteriorated beyond what has visible to all. However, Ratzinger's aide, the Rev. Georg Gaenswein, said Ratzinger's remarks did not mean John Paul's health had worsened in recent days. He said Ratzinger's remarks came in response to a request by a group of visiting German brewers to have an audience with the pontiff while they were in Rome. "They were told, 'Unfortunately, this is not possible. The pope's health doesn't allow him to make a lot of physical effort,'" Gaenswein recalled. Gaenswein noted that conserving strength was particularly important in the run-up to a heavy schedule John Paul has given himself for the month of October, including celebrations of his 25th anniversary as pope. On Sept. 23, the pontiff came down with an intestinal ailment that caused him to skip his weekly general audience the next day. Asked whether Ratzinger's comments indicated any change in the pope's condition, the Vatican press office replied by noting that John Paul would resume the general audience on Wednesday. The pope will also celebrate a Mass on Sunday on the steps of St. Peter's Basilica to raise three churchmen to sainthood, the Vatican announced Tuesday. Canonization ceremonies generally last about two hours, an indication that the pope's doctors think he has the stamina for the appearance. The Vatican recently also announced that the pope is forging ahead with plans to visit a Marian sanctuary in Pompeii, southern Italy, on Oct. 7. On Sunday, John Paul spoke with great difficulty and stopped to catch his breath several times as he announced the appointments of 31 new cardinals from his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square. Asked whether the pope is taking on too much given his state of health, Ratzinger was quoted as telling Bunte that "that is very probably the case." But, pressed as to whether he could dissuade the ailing pontiff from loading himself with duties, he added: "that's something other people must do." Bunte described the cardinal as speaking in an interview, but Gaenswein denied that a formal interview had been granted. The magazine quoted Gaenswein as saying of the pope: "He cannot walk and stand any more, but for the faith