The Rock of the Ages

"Thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18) The world today is in the throes of the worst spiritual drought of all time, prefigured by the scene in the Old Testament where the people in the desert were fainting away with thirst. We read in Numbers 20: 7-11 how God instructed Moses to tell the people that they would drink water out of the Rock of Horeb, which when he struck it with his rod, the waters gushed out so that the people and their cattle were refreshed and revitalized.

This was a figure of the Rock of Peter out of which would gush the living waters of Faith through which the people of the New Testament would be nourished and strengthened. (1 Cor. 10:4) This forthcoming institution of Christianity is often referred to in the Old Testament as God's holy mountain. "And you shall know that I am the Lord your God, dwelling in Sion my holy mountain." (Joel 3:17) This mountain of God would be established in the land of the Roman Empire, Italy, which would become the seat of Christianity, fulfilling Christ's word to Peter: "Thou art Peter; and upon this rock I will build my Church." (Mt.16:18) Now the word for mountain in German is "berg", and in the north of Italy lies the majestic, snow-capped Bergamo Alps, bergamo signifying house on the mountain. And from this beautiful mountain flows the Oglio River which feeds the north end of Lake Iseo known historically as the Lacus Sabinus, or lake of the Romans. The word oglio is an archaic variant of olio which is Italian for oil, though prior to the 14th century this word was used specifically to signify olive oil, showing its Roman roots.

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Now Mountains are comprised of rock, so in that sense a mountain or berg can be seen as a mighty rock (petrus), and in fact the Swedish word for rock in that context is berg. When we combine berg with oglio, we get Bergoglio, the Italian name of the cardinal who became Pope Francis on March 13, 2013. Though he lived in Argentina, Cardinal Bergoglio is of Italian descent, being of Italian parents. And, too, he took on the name Francis after St. Francis of Assisi whose middle name was Pietro or Peter, so clearly we see a Roman connection. There is much discussion adrift at this time concerning the prophecy of St. Malachy who in 1139 was given prophetic insight of the remaining 112 popes that would reign before the Second Coming. Each pope in his vision is identified by a symbolic name which either characterizes their pontificate or refers to some point about the time or place of their birth. According to the prophecy, assuming they are true and unedited, only one pope remains after Benedict XVI, and that is Petrus Romanus or Peter the Roman. The final prophecy of St. Malachy reads: "In the final persecution of the Holy Roman Church there will reign Petrus Romanus who will feed his flock amidst many tribulations, after which the city of the seven hills [Rome] will be utterly destroyed and the dreadful Judge will then judge the people. The End." Is Cardinal Bergoglio Peter the Roman? This of course remains to be seen. "By their fruits you shall know them." (Mt. 7:20) What is interesting is that another key definition of "oglio" is: a homogeneous mixture or medley of things or works, e.g. works of different people, a potpourri of different musical compositions, etc. In this context we might see oglio as a mixture of various tribes and nations bonded by one universal Faith under one universal prince. Will Bergoglio be this latter day preacher to the Gentiles to bring them into the Mountain of the Lord for their refreshment and edification? Founded on the banks of the Oglio on the south end of Lake Iseo is the town of Pallazzolo sull'Oglio, known for its historically famous Tower of the People, which is the highest round tower in Europe. Will the towering religious figure of the last times, Pope Francis, be the boast of the people who will look to him as a beacon in these times of darkness and distress? The prophecy states that Petrus Romanus "will feed his flock amidst many tribulations", and what will he feed them but the pure waters of holy tradition issuing forth from the Rock of Peter. Fifty years of turbulent "reform" has produced nothing but escalating divorce, discord, heresy and apostasy, culminating now with the sex-abuse among the priests which God in his providence has allowed as a wake-up call for the clergy. The people are tired of all the abuse and turmoil, they've been thirsting in the desert since Vatican II with little relief from their pastors. The people are saying it's time for a change, and for a return to the right and shining way that had proven itself through history. As St. Paul says: "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good." (1 Thessalonians 5:21) Yes, we pray that the pontificate of Francis I will mark a change for the better that will steer the Barque of Peter back out into the deep away from the secular coasts, so that its people can again bask in the light and enjoy that deep blue liberty of orthodoxy without having to contend any longer with the smog of modernism to choke up their spiritual lives.