On the Ides of March (only coincidentally my birthday) last week, nearly 500 people were killed in a Waco-like conflagration in Uganda. Like some sort of Catholic Branch-Davidians, these eschatological radicals believed that the Virgin Mary had promised them that March 15 was the end of the world. And for them it was.

Though it is easy to distance ourselves from this kind of radical action, most of us are still fascinated with prophecies regarding the Parousia and the Eschaton. (For those of you who slept through Theo 100, that's "the Second Coming" and "the end of time"). Aside from the Christ and the Antichrist, the most prominent figure in most prophecies is that of the Pope.

Most well known of arcane Christian prophets is Nostradamus. Buried in his esoteric and enigmatic quatrains can be found references to the last pope of all time. Nostradamus describes a man born as a Jew … the first Jew to hold the papal office in centuries. He will be known by the same name as the first pope, and he will reign at the same time that the third and final antichrist will come to political power. The Cardinal Archbishop of Paris converted from Judaism at an early age and is thought by some to be papabile. Some ask, "Is this coincidence?" and "What happens if he is elected pope?" I guess we can only wait and watch.

Less well known are the prophecies of St. Malachy. Attributed to the 12th century Irish bishop of Connor and Armagh, these prophecies consist of a list of notes on 112 popes, from his time to the end of the world. Questionable in their authenticity, the notes each describe something of the pontiff's coat of arms, pontificate or personality. While some are as vague as the quatrains of the better known Nostradamus, some descriptions, of even modern popes, are strikingly clear. The real kicker? After Pope John Paul II, there are only two popes left. Though he does not actually specify that there will be no other popes between his last two, there have as yet been no gaps in his 800 year old list. The last bishop of Rome will be called Peter the Roman and will reign in a time of both unusual peace and unprecedented turmoil.

Radical conservative Protestant leaders and televangelists have often pointed to the Apocalypse of John to identify the pope as the beast, identified by his blasphemous name. They point out that there have already been five popes named Sixtus, and the sixth of this name would be the harbinger of doom because of his name's similarity to the name of the beast: 666.

Whether you take any of these seriously, or think they are nonsense, we are all called to remember that no one shall know the day or the hour. Moreover, if we are caught unawares when the Christ comes again we will be left in the outer darkness, where there will be a wailing and a gnashing of teeth.

Not a pleasant thought, is it?

• Popes and prophecy