Pope Benedict/Wikipedia

News outlets are reporting that Pope Benedict the XVI would be assassinated within the next 12 months.

The sensational prediction was allegedly made by Cardinal Paolo Romeo, the archbishop of Palermo in Sicily, during a visit to China in November 2011, the Telegraph reported. He seemed so sure of the fact that the people he spoke with, including Italian businessmen and Chinese representatives of the Catholic Church, were convinced that he was talking about an assassination attempt, the report said. They were so alarmed by his remarks that they reported them back to the Vatican.

Italian newspaper Il Fatto Quotidiano ran a report Friday, Feb. 10, containing excerpts from a confidential document outlining comments made by Cardinal Paolo Romeo.

It is an unfortunate news, but some say that if the prediction does come true, then that could potentially fulfill the prophecy of St. Malachy about the final pope “Peter the Roman,” since according to the prediction, the current Pope could be next to the last pope, whose reign would be short-lived. Benedict XVI ascended to the throne in 2005.

The Vatican dismissed the report as “delirious”.

Rightfully so.