OKay.. so .. i dont know if this is true .. but i heard that the pope has writings on his hat..and I guess it says..excuse me for this if it offends..but '666'... and i was just wondering if what i heard was true..and where i can find additional information on the topic...that you for your time..please help me answer my question

-- Krista (krista_p_07@hotmail.com), December 01, 2004

Answers

Hi Krista and welcome!

Thanks for asking the question instead of just taking that claim at face value. It is patently false. I don't have the refernces right now to where that lie came from and what the truth is. If someone else doesn't give you the truth about it in the next day or so, I'll dig it up for you.

God bless!

-- Andy S ("ask3332004@yahoo.com"), December 01, 2004.

Krista,

This has been discussed on this board before. I'll provide more info if I get some time.

http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=00BLZL

-- Andy S ("ask3332004@yahoo.com"), December 01, 2004.

A link that may be helpful.

http://www.catholic.com/newsletters/kke_030930.asp

Here's a quote from J.F. Gecik that's worth repeating. It was part of a reply about a claim that the Pope is the Beast of revelation and related to 666. I post relevant excerpts.

Here are a few facts...

2. He said that "they" called him "Vicarius Filii Dei" or "instead of the Son of God." First of all, "vicarius" means "vicar" (one serving as a substitute for one who cannot be physically present). It does not mean "instead of," which can imply "illegitimately supplanting." Second, and more important, none of the popes has ever had "Vicarius Filii Dei" as a title! Popes are called "Bishop of Rome" and "Patriarch of the West" and "Pontifex Maximus" (supreme pontiff) ... AND "Vicarius Christi" or Vicar of Christ.

3. The 666 nonsense is based on letters in "VFD" that match Roman numerals. They STARTED with the 666 and invented a title that would add up properly! They had to do it, since "Vicarius Christi" adds up only to 214.

4. You are right, Hannah, in saying that 666 has been shown to come from the full name of Nero Caesar -- who persecuted the Christians, killing Sts. Peter and Paul.

5. To show how people can play games with 666, consider this: A foundress of Seventh Day Adventism (from which the evil brood broke away) was Ellen Gould White, and her name "adds up" to 666, based on L=50, L=50, U=5 (like a V), L=50, D=500, W=10 (like two Vs), I=1.

7. The seven hills of Rome are in the city, East of the Tiber River. They do not include the Vatican, which is West of the River, outside the ancient city.

-- Andy S ("ask3332004@yahoo.com"), December 01, 2004.

while i can't confirm, it was my understanding that this rumor ACTUALLY started in the seventh day adventist groups.

interesting note on the seven hills of rome: there are actually more than 14 hills of rome, but as noted, only seven PROMINANT hills which are in city center east of the tiber river, which do not include the vatican.

-- paul h (dontSendMeMail@notAnAddress.com), December 02, 2004.

Pope Fiction by Patrick Madrid, 2002, Basilica Press, pp 89- 99 covers this particular topic quite well.

-- Andy S ("ask332040@yahoo.com"), December 03, 2004.