Whether or not you believe that Tribulations and a Warning for mankind, as foretold at Garabandal and in other private revelations, are imminent, it can’t hurt to be prepared for such events.
This article relates to “end of the times” warnings given by our Blessed Mother through messages to various individuals, particularly during apparitions at Garabandal, Spain; Quito, Ecuador; Akita, Japan; Kibeho, Rwanda; La Salette, France; Heede, Germany; and Fatima, Portugal.
Note, however, that these “end of the times” messages and events are not specifically related to the “end of time” and second coming of Christ. They are, rather, events that mark the entry into what might be called a new spiritual age.
I am not arguing the validity or fine points of these apparitions and messages. The purpose of this article is rather to address how we should prepare ourselves, and be prepared to help others, assuming the purported events come to pass in our time. A key event foretold at Garabandal to precede the “end of the times” is the Pope visiting Moscow.
Proclaiming the Supernatural to a World of Skeptics
I recall seeing “Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark” as a teenager and thinking at the end, “it just doesn’t ring true.” At the end of the movie, our hero, Indiana, experiences the glory and power of God – the shekinah fire of God, and the destroying Angel. Indy should have come away completely transformed; a card-carrying orthodox Catholic. But instead, he remains the skeptical, secular-humanist, man of science (the old lie that science and Catholicism mix like champagne and motor oil).
I suppose the writers and producers got together and decided “Indiana Jones and the Quest for the Latin Mass” wouldn’t make for a blockbuster sequel.
Whatever cynical reasons they might have had for maintaining Indy’s hard-headed materialism, there is a greater truth underlying it. We have in our nature a stunning capacity to brush off the greatness of God no matter how miraculously it manifests itself. Take for example Pharaoh, who witnessed the power of God in the ten plagues and yet his heart remained hardened. In Jesus’ time, consider all those who witnessed His miracles and yet walked away during the bread of life discourse, because His teaching was too difficult.
We encounter this principle in our time. The miracles of Fatima, Guadalupe, Las Lajas, and so many others are written off or simply ignored by a faithless world.
This innate skepticism and imperviousness to the supernatural is an important backdrop to preparing for “end of the times” events.
The “End of the Times” Events
There is some overlap and differences in how these “end of the times” events play out in different Marian apparitions and other private revelations. In this article I am using the vocabulary and sequence of events as given by our Blessed Mother to four school girls (Mari Loli, Mari Cruz, Jacinta and Conchita) at Garabandal, Spain, from 1961 to 1965.
There are many descriptions of these events, such as here, here and here. In brief, the Garabandal sequence of events are:
- The Tribulation – great trials and societal unrest (caused especially by the spread of communism) leading up to the Warning. This may be precipitated by the Pope traveling to Moscow, with unrest breaking out in Europe and spreading through the world.
- The Warning (also called the “Illumination of Conscience”) – a mini-judgement experienced by all. It will last only a short time, but will seem long because we will see all of our life, good and bad, as God sees it.
- The Great Miracle and Sign – a miracle visible to all in vicinity of Garabandal to confirm the authenticity of the apparitions and Warning, with an accompanying permanent miraculous physical sign left “in the Pines” of Garabandal.
- The Chastisement – if the world doesn’t repent sufficiently, there will be a chastisement (some speculate this might include the Three Days of Darkness).
Based on other apparitions, these events might then lead to an era of peace; a time of worldwide conversion and harmony.
Our Preparation
Our preparation for the illumination of conscience is simple – we follow the messages from Mary, which are nothing more or less than the perennial teachings of the Church. Make a good confession at least once a month. Receive the Eucharist at least once a week, but as often during the week as we are able. And make acts of penance and reparation. Pray the Rosary daily.
I suggest that implicit in the list are daily Christian meditation, doing our best to grow in virtue and conquer vice, and seriously learning the precepts of our faith. We will need all of this to help others, as described below.
Some have speculated that the Chastisement might also include the “three days of darkness,” which is known from other private revelations, particularly those of Blessed Maria Taigi and Marie-Julie Jahenny. This is a three-day period of complete darkness, no lights or other equipment will work. The only source of light will be from pure wax candles that have been blessed by a priest. Going outside, or even looking out a window, during this three-day period, could be fatal.
Helping Others
Here we return to the Indiana Jones example.
It was revealed to the visionaries at Garabandal that soon after the Warning the forces of darkness would mount campaigns to convince the world that the miraculous illumination of conscience, experienced simultaneously by the entire world, had nothing to do with God and could be explained away by science. Perhaps they will try to write it off as a group hallucination caused by a solar flare. Richard Dawkins, and others, are already laying the groundwork.
Whatever they come up with, they will have a large audience willing to latch on to any explanation that does away with God. All the while Satan and his minions will be fanning the flames their skepticism.
And even among the multitudes who are open to believing the truth of what they experienced, many will be ill-equipped for what to do in response to it.
Below is a draft script you could use for an email or conversation, editing as needed, of course (thank you to Kelly from our Rosary group for the initial inspiration for this). You’ll see the script ends with an invitation to meet, preferably in person, so you can discuss their next steps.
From that point you would invite them to take the next steps into the faith, depending on where they are in their spiritual journey. If they are completely un-Churched, you would be helping them start from scratch. If they are practicing Christians, you would help them come into the fullness of the Catholic faith. And if they are lapsed Catholics, you would help them return to the Sacraments. And so on.
A Sample Script
Dear _______,
First, be not afraid!
This is a brief note to emphasize that what we all experienced yesterday (which has been called “the warning”) was absolutely real, and it was exactly what it seemed to be – the God of the Bible (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) spoke to each of us and gave us a wake-up call.
I want you to know that this was not a surprise to many of us, because it had been foretold by messages from the Blessed Virgin Mary.
That may sound extraordinary, but after yesterday I think we can all agree we are in extraordinary times.
Believe
To help you believe the validity of all of this, here are a few remarkable facts from just one of the Blessed Mother’s visitations – in this case to four young girls in Garabandal, Spain in the 1960’s:
- One of the girls was told that this would all come to pass after the reign of 3 more popes. But then she clarified (paraphrasing) “it’s actually four Popes but one will reign for such a short time it won’t count.” She essentially predicted the coming of Pope John Paul 1, in 1978, who reigned for just 33 days.
- On another occasion, the same girl was told it would happen after an “important synod.” Bear in mind these were simple girls living in rural Spain. They had no way of knowing what a “synod” was. A “synod” is a formal term for a specific type of Church conference, and they are relatively rare events. As it turns out, the Catholic Church just held and unusually long and significant synod.
- In a 1965 interview, one of the girls revealed that leading up to “the warning” the Pope will go to Moscow, and when he returns hostility or war will break out in parts of Europe. No pope had ever visited Moscow. Pope Francis’ trip was the first, and soon afterward hostilities increased and “the warning” occurred.
Those are just three examples, among many others, of how people in the Catholic Church have known this was coming.
Commit to Christ
God has also revealed that the reason for this is His desire for us “to draw closer to Him and to increase our faith.”
What needs to happen now is that we must commit ourselves to giving our lives to Christ. It is important we do this, for two reasons.
First, we must commit ourselves to conversion for the sake of our own soul. We’ve been given the gift of seeing our soul as God sees us. That is a great gift because now we’ve seen ourselves as God sees us, and we know what we need to do to become the person God created us to be.
The second reason why our conversion is so important has to do with all of humanity. Yesterday’s events have revealed to the world that there really is such a thing as good and evil. God exists. And so does Satan. What do you think the forces of evil are going to attempt to do? They’re going to try to convince people that all of this was some sort of group hallucination from a meteorological event, and that it has nothing to do with God. If they succeed and enough people don’t convert, there will be a terrible trial that God will allow to be unleashed upon the world that will bring about great suffering.
What’s Next
So, for ourselves, our loved ones, and for the good of all the world, we need to take seriously what we do next.
Just as this was all anticipated through the Catholic Church, it is within the Catholic Church that there is the full understanding of how we give our lives to Christ and live the life He desires for us.
The next steps are really very simple, but best to discuss in person. Let’s meet tomorrow and we can walk through this together…
Your friend, in Christ,
YOU
30 thoughts on “If the Pope Goes to Moscow – Preparing for Garabandal”
In his book, Weber apparently never stated that the pope will go to moscow. Only some hearsay interview.
However, the quote DOES NOT APPEAR anywhere inMr. Weber’s book, “Garabandal – Der Zeigefinger Gottes,” (1993, revised 2000). People in possession of the Second Edition of the book, who have personally gone through the entire work seven (7) times have never found the word “Moscow” appear in the book. This research was independently confirmed to be correct by a Brazilian Garabandalist and friend of Santiago Lanus.
An unanswerable question remains: Why would Mr. Weber withhold such a unique and significant piece of information from his own publication, and also with a revision of his book in 2000? This remains a puzzle, and actually quite bizarre.
Br. David Anthony:
Various prophecy scriptures in the Bible give us a slightly different version of the Great Tribulation, as well as the return of Christ.
I would venture to say that we are about to see the fulfillment of the 6th Trumpet War, described in Chapter 9 of Revelation.
I have been following Garabandal, and the movement that sprang up around it, since the early ’90s.
And up until roughly the day before yesterday, I had never seen any account the three popes prophecy as anything other than “three more popes, ONE OF WHICH would reign for only a short time.”
It was widely and almost universally understood among Garabandal’s followers, well into the 21st century, that John Paul II was the third and final pope, after which would come “the end of the times.”
What is the source for the claim that John Paul I’s one-month reign was separate from the three popes? It’s not inconceivable that there would be long-term confusion with regards to Garabandal–it’s happened on multiple occasions, with regard to multiple aspects–but for something of this magnitude, concrete evidence is needed.
When Conchita heard the bells ringing in the town proclaiming the death of Pope John XXIII in 1963, she said to her mother, “There will only be three more popes,” and then immediately corrected herself and said, “No, four, but his reign will be so short it won’t count.” She was, of course, referring to Pope John Paul I, whose reign lasted just 33 days.
Apparently, the death of Pope Benedict XVI, on December 31, 2022, marked the “end of the times” and that we are now in the period where the final prophecies of Garabandal will be fulfilled.
When Pope Francis, or his successor, return to Rome from a trip to Moscow, the Tribulation period is supposed to begin. The Warning will put an end to the Tribulation followed, within a year, by the Miracle. The Chastisement will come if mankind continues on its path of sin.
Br. David Anthony, I am asking for the SOURCE of your quote from Conchita. The earliest record I can find of anyone claiming that she said that the pope with a brief reign was a fourth pope, not one of the three, was an unsourced blog post from 2015.
Given the widespread belief through the ’80s, ’90s, and 2000s that John Paul II was the third and final pope of the prophecy, something more concrete than that is needed.
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The final chastisement, sent by God’s own hand, will lead us into the New Era of Peace, otherwise known as the Parousia.
I believe the three days of darkness will come between the warning and miracle, since Jesus told St. Faustina that after the warning, there would be the cross that will light up the sky after the earth would be covered with darkness. It is my understanding, that is why Our Divine Lord will perform the Great Miracle which would last for all eternity.
Ann:
A worldwide nuclear war could result in three days of darkness –
“a period of abnormal cold and darkness predicted to follow a nuclear war, caused by a layer of smoke and dust in the atmosphere blocking the sun’s rays.”
Revelation 9 tells us about a coming war that will kill 1/3 of mankind. That’s about 2.7 billion people today. Conventional warfare would take a considerable amount of time to produce that death toll, but nuclear attacks would do it.
Pope Francis is 86. Pope John Paul II was 84 when he died in 2005. Pope Paul VI was 80 when he died in 1978. Pope John XXIII was 81 when he died in 1963. Pope Pius XII was 82 when he died in 1958. Pope Pius XI was 81 when he died in 1939.
Pope Benedict XVI was 95 when he died last year. I do not expect pope Francis to live past 90. Therefore, when we talk about the pope going to Moscow which pope are we referring to? And who is he going to meet in Moscow? Putin’s days are numbered, and he certainly knows it.
There is a possibility that we may have another new pope, very different from Pope Francis in his clarity on moral teaching. What the world very badly needs is a pope whose teaching is so clear and sharp and simple that even everybody understands, even if only a few accept it. This new pope may be the one who goes to Moscow to meet both the Russian religious leaders and the government leaders in an attempt to prevent “the annihilation of several nations”. While pope Francis may be interested in going to Russia, I don’t think he will unless Russia escalates the proxy war with NATO in Ukraine to a much higher level — to a level of direct confrontation with America and Europe that startles the whole world.
At the moment we are living in a era of uncertainties and worries about the near future. A handful of unwise men can send 6 billion people to their deaths in less than 24 hours. This is not a good time to be investing in stocks and shares on Wallstreet. We are on the brink of a new global understanding about the universal creator who brought each one of us into existence out of nothing. The teachings of science and technology infused into our modern culture has buried the concept of a real living God who controls nature and life, as though it were a mental aberration or a myth. Very soon we are going to have to grabble with two new understandings that are not in contradiction with each other – just the way they are taught to us are – the concept of God in his heaven as the universal creator, and the laws of science and technology that He keeps in existence.
If mankind has a thousand years of peace beyond the reign of the Antichrist and beyond the book of the Apocalypse – a thousand years as one day with God – then we will be living in God’s Kingdom on earth and at the same time living in a world justice, in which every tear will be wiped away. For the former things will have passed away, into the dustbin of history – the things that we read about in our newspapers every day.
Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.
Hi Eward – thank you for your comments. The Pope of the Garabandal visionaries appears to be Pope Francis (the reasoning is explained in the links where the article says “here, here and here.” So, yes – if he’s going to Moscow, it seems like it would be in the next few years.
And thank you for that Robert Frost poem – how have I gone this long and not heard that one???
Revelation 9 tells us about a coming war that originates from the Euphrates River, an army of 200 million, and the death of 1/3 of mankind.
Ezekiel 38 foretells about an alliance of nations that will attack Israel.
No doubt it can, and will, happen. Bible prophecies are fulfilled.
Sorry but once again the offerings of Offenbach contradict the seers of Garabandal – there are either 3 or 4 Popes before the ‘end of the times’ or there are not.
Wittering on about what future Popes might do misses the point entirely;
What if the Pope refferred to in the message is not the current Pope but has already been to Moscow?
https://www.ncronline.org/news/russias-catholics-react-skeptically-cardinal-parolins-visit
See?
Petrus Romanus – Peter-the-Roman – has already been to Moscow….
Youre all making assumptions that a past or present Pope will go to Moscow…
What if Our Lady meant a future – not current – Pope will go to Moscow?
So now you know the Prophecy is fullfilled and a future Pope has been revealed.
You people really are simpletons. 🙂
The pope will be refusing I. Moscow 9/4/23
Soap,
Peace on earth doesn’t come until Jesus returns. Read the Bible.
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Our Lady’s locutions to the late Fr. Gobbi relate to the “illumination of conscience” and the new times – not the end of the world. Check out the Marian Movement of Priests for more information.
The Bible does not refer to the “end times” as the end of the world. The Book of Revelation reveals what happens before and after Jesus returns to the earth.
In a world that has been at war since the beginning of our species its a walk in the park to predict tribulations, warnings, miracles ( esp in this age) and chastisement.
Are the private revelations in keeping with those given to us in the Bible?
My concern about Marian devotions/revelations is the lack of biblical foundations.
I’m reminded of the words of Jesus in Luke 18:8.
The Book of Revelation gave us warnings about future events. Chapter 9 tells us about an upcoming war that will originate from the area of the Euphrates River and results in the death of 1/3 of mankind. Some refer to this as WWIII.
Has it already begun?
Secondly, pertaining to the Warning, here is an interview with Conchita herself on Irish TV in 1980/81 in New York.
This link will tak you to the exact moment I am refferring to at 6:46 in – https://youtu.be/m8O3VdJDejk?t=406
here is the exchange between Conchita and host Gay Byrne –
Byrne – What… will there be a warning before you give the message or is the warning at about the same time?
Conchita – The Blessed Mother say before the Miracle is one warning is coming to the whole world…. is something gonna happen in the whole world… and eh they gonna know, everybody gonna know its coming from God.
Byrne – Yes. No matter where we are in the world?
Conchita – Yes. It dont have nothing to do with Garabandal, but is something going to happen…. like to prepare ourselves to the Miracle.
I am very confused by this last section more or less saying teh Warning has nothing to do with Garabandal…. but again, it is a direct quote from the source itself so there can be no arguing with it….
Dear Soap –
My understanding is that Conchita was differentiating between the Miracle (which is specifically located at Garabandal) and the Warning – which is worldwide. When she says “It dont have nothing to do with Garabandal” I believe she simply means that the Warning doesn’t having anything specifically to do wtih Garabandal geographically speaking (because it is everywhere) – she is not saying it doesn’t have anything to do with the Garabandal messages.
@Steve Smith March 14, AD2023 at 2:11 pm
Gotcha! That makes sense!
Thanks for the clarification.
Be interested to hear your thoughts on my other post – Pope + Moscow = Peace
What say you?
She meant the warning was NOT about the town of GARABANDAL. It’s gonna be felt world wide
There seems to be much confusion over the Pope and Moscow. Many people repeat the story but I have found no original sources or quotes pertaining to war breaking out after a Popes visit.
On the contrary, all of the sourceable quotes I have found indicate that peace and the conversion of Russia will occur as soon as the Pope visits Moscow;
"Garabandal: The Village Speaks" by Ramón Pérez: The book includes an interview with Conchita González, in which she describes the message she received about the Pope's visit to Moscow. The quote is reproduced in the book as follows: *"The Virgin said that there will be a council and after that, Russia will be converted. She also said that the Pope will go to Russia and will place his foot in Moscow. Then, Russia will be converted."*
"The Apparitions of Garabandal" by F. Sanchez-Ventura Y Pascual: The book quotes Conchita's message about the Pope's visit to Moscow and provides some commentary on its significance. The quote appears in the book as follows: *"She [the Virgin Mary] told me that there would be a council in the Church and that after this council Russia would be converted. And when would this happen? When the Pope goes to Moscow and places his foot on the land where so much blood has been shed, faith will be restored."*
"Garabandal: A Message of Hope" by Edward Serrano: The book includes a section on the message about the Pope's visit to Moscow, and reproduces the quote in a slightly different form. The quote in the book reads: *"The Virgin told me that there will be a council and after this council, Russia will be converted. And when will this happen? When the Pope goes to Moscow and places his foot on the land where so much blood has been shed, faith will be restored."*
No mention of a war breaking out.
Perhaps Pope Francis knows and understands the true message – that his visit will bring peace – and that is why he is keen to go?
Thank you for those illuminating references.
Elsewhere Conchita has stated she was told by our Holy Mother that there will not be a World War III.
Based on numerous apparitions and private revelation, if the Warning comes to pass, and enough people convert, there will be a time of a certain degree of peace.
But what one thing we know for sure, there will never be “heaven on earth” until the Christ’s Second Coming brings the true end of time and new heavens and new earth.
Why are we NOT surprised that a Socialist Pope goes to a Socialist nation, who government has murdered millions of Christians, which still believes in Karl Marx wrote that religion is “the opiate of the masses”. Also, since we are baptized into Jesus the Christ we are always prepared for His Second Advent. Thus we pray: “Come Lord Jesus! Come quickly! Amen”
Thank you for the comments, T.W.
You’re correct – Pope Francis is certainly the right Pope at the right time. Not only is God’s timing perfect, His HR department is as well.
I do take issue with your statement that we are “always prepared” by virtue of our baptism. The sanctifying grace of baptism is indispensable, but we must continually “make our election permanent” and “work out our salvation” particularly through the Sacraments of the Eucharist and Reconciliation.
It’s just part of our human nature that we can lose our edge from time to time. If the Pope goes to Moscow it will be a wake up call to do a self-assessment and make sure we’re remaining vigilant.
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