"If
Satan would contrive to hinder a papal election, the Church would suffer
great travail."
--Fr. Herman Bernard Kramer, 1955
The following quotes
are taken from Fr. Herman Bernard Kramer's Book of Destiny (Imprimatur
1956), currently published by TAN
Books and Publishers. The Book of Destiny is an interpretation
of the last book of the Bible, the "Apocalypse" (aka "Revelation").
Commenting on Apocalypse
12:2-3 ("And being with child, she cried travailing in birth: and
was in pain to be delivered. And there was seen another sign in heaven.
And behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns and
on his heads seven diadems."), Fr. Kramer writes:
". . . However,
the text demands a more specific application to the definite future
event to which the prophecy obviously points, and in which the Church
suffers the keenest pangs passing at that time through the greatest
crisis of her whole life. In that travail, she gives birth to some definite
'person' who is to RULE the Church with a rod of iron (verse 5). It
then points to a conflict waged within the Church to elect one who was
to 'rule all nations' in the manner clearly stated. In accord
with the text this is unmistakably a PAPAL ELECTION, for only Christ
and His Vicar have the divine right to rule ALL NATIONS. Furthermore,
the Church does not travail in anguish at EVERY papal election which
can be held without trouble or danger. But at this time the great powers
may take a menacing attitude to hinder the election of the logical and
expected candidate by threats of a general apostasy, assassination or
imprisonment of this candidate if elected. This would suppose an extremely
hostile mind in the governments of Europe towards the Church and would
cause intense anguish to the Church, because an extended interregnum
in the papacy is always disastrous and more so in a time of universal
persecution. If Satan would contrive to hinder a papal election, the
Church would suffer great travail."
". . . As a dragon, Satan through the evil world-powers of that
time will enter the Church, interfere with her liberty and perhaps by
stealthy suggestions having long before directed the choosing of candidates
for the episcopate will now endeavor by threats of force to hinder the
election of the worthiest candidate for the papacy."
(from Herman Bernard Kramer,
The Book of Destiny, TAN Books and Publishers, Rockford, IL,
1975, pp. 277-279)
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