Written in the Stars | Saturday, April 9, 2005 Did someone say something about the pope? God I'm glad that's over. Or at least over for now. Next, the mini-pontiffs get to mourn and politic for the next eight days, as Mercury stations direct, then hold an election leading into an eclipse on the 24th of April. I still have clear memories of the last time there were papal elections, in the summer of 1978. Had the procedure not been repeated twice in as many months, I might have forgotten. Who knows what kind of world we would have experienced under Albino Luciani ('white light'), John Paul I, whose name I did not hear uttered once during many, many hours of watching pope coverage on BBC and CNN's international editions. Isn't that strange? Not once? Nor one mention in print? The namesake of the great man -- the first pope to ever bear two names, which were the names of his predecessors -- was completely ignored, like he never existed? I liked the look of him at the time he was elected; I was 14. I still like it today. Here is his picture: http://www.reformation.org/luciani.jpg And here is a bio: http://europeanhistory.about.com/library/readyref/blpersonpopejohnpaul.htm He served 33 days and was found dead in bed. This bio makes no reference to a murder plot. But apparently some feel that's a sensible suspicion as most people in excellent health don't mysteriously die in their sleep and then don't have the benefit of an autopsy. With this subject, we move into lunatic fringe territory. I've looked around a bit and found an interesting, well-presented conspiracy page that addresses some of the situations surrounding Luciani's death, and which includes three references to Nostradamus that I cannot promise you apply to Luciani but which are certainly interesting: http://www.dreamscape.com/morgana/johnpaul.htm Here is another, more detailed: http://www.crc-internet.org/oct84.htm And one that I don't like as much, but which is still interesting: http://www.libertytothecaptives.net/eberhart_pope_john_paul.html The upshot of these pages is that Luciani had ordered an investigation in to the Vatican Bank, as well as a number of personnel changes in order to get corrupt men out of the way. The night he issued his orders, he died. I mean, this is Italy we're talking about, after all. Perhaps look some of that data over, and see if maybe it doesn't make a little sense that Luciani was erased from consciousness during the most stunning media frenzy around a Catholic religion story in the history of history. I mean, the guy is famous enough that his birth data comes included free with my astrology program, Io Edition, in the World Leaders folder. You would think somebody would have done a sidebar on the last few popes, or a story on the last time a pope died. With a little research, I was able to find that Luciani was found dead in his bed at 4:45 am the morning of Sept. 29, 1978 (Vatican City, Vatican). The time that a body is found is the crime scene chart and is an appropriate horary chart. Horary is the study of the astrology of the hour: be it the hour of an inquiry about a question, or the time something happened or was discovered. My horary astrology mentor, Dave Roell (who sells astrology books -- http://astroamerica.com/ ) suggests that in the case of a "did he fall, or was he pushed?" chart, the thing to check first is the ruler of the 7th house. The 7th house and its ruler (traditionally partners and open enemies) would be the house representing the prospective killer, if one exists. If one does not, it should be clear from the significators involved. The chart has Virgo on the ascendant, at which we must pause: Saturn is occupying the degree of the ascendant. Saturn represents all things official; it's also a universal significator for the death or the end; and it carries the authority of official sanction. With Saturn in Virgo, something official is going on; not, for instance, something amateur, accidental or random. There is certainly an air of finality to that Saturn rising. With Virgo rising, Pisces is on the 7th house cusp. The only traditional point to occupy the 7th house is the South Node of the Moon (Ketu, the past, past karma, past associations, tradition, the old ways of doing things, and KARMA), which is also in Pisces, and close to the 8th house. We need to look to the rulers of Pisces for more information -- Jupiter first, then Neptune. First ruler is Jupiter, which is in Leo, in the 11th house. The first thing I think of is money. It is also conjunct the part of fortune. The second thing I think of is money. In fact, gold. Read through those conspiracy links and you'll see a lot of references to the Vatican Bank, which has a lot of money in the form of gold -- perhaps the most gold anywhere in the world with the possible exception of Switzerland. Leo has a ruling planet. That would be the Sun. We find the Sun in the 2nd house -- the official house of wealth, which supports the motive; it is conjunct Mercury, which is the ruler of the Virgo ascendant. Also -- the Sun and Mercury are in a perfect sextile aspect. They are in contact, which supports the case for contact between Luciani and someone involved with a potential crime. Let's look at secondary rulers -- modern planets. Looking again at a ruler of Pisces, we find something I think is really interesting: Neptune is in the 4th house exactly conjunct Pallas Athene. While I would normally leave asteroids out of horary, this is too good to ignore. The 4th house can represent the papal household. Neptune is always often involved if there is a deception or conspiracy of some kind -- and in we find him in the 4th, conjunct the asteroid Pallas Athene -- the asteroid of government and politics. Now, in any event, we do have a political mystery; a head of state has died. But Neptune conjunct Pallas Athene puts the prospective murder in his space, and gives a political identity and a political motive. Neptune is also a good planet to look to for the presence of poison. New house: the 8th house is also required reading in a death chart; it's the house of the nature and cause of death. Aries is on the cusp of the 8t (in fact, in the exact degree, near the Aries Point, where Mercury is about to station direct next week. Maybe we'll get some news from this dusty old case.) In any event, Aries is ruled by Mars, and we find Mars in Scorpio, which has spooky overtones: Mars could certainly represent a killer, and Mars also represents the blood. Mars falls in the 3rd house. The 3rd house is the house of one's brethren. Essentially, if you believe this chart, the nature and cause of death is his brethren. I was about to say this is interesting, but it's really starting to feel creepy. As well, the 9th house is ruled by Mars, since the last degree of Aries reaches the 9th house -- the 9th being the house of religious institutions such as the church. So there is a double significator: the same planet represents the cause of death and also represents the church itself. In fact, I've about had enough. But I'll add one last thing. The Moon is the universal significator for the question itself, and it can also be the significator for the subject of the question. We find the Moon in Leo in the 12th house, void of course (in the last degree of Leo: Sabian symbol = "An unsealed letter"). The 12th is the final house and so it has to be involved in a death inquiry. It's kind of like 'heaven'. And here, we find the Moon, floating in the last degree of Leo, as if it has no direction, no strength of its own. It is true, the question has not persisted. But since it occupies the degree of "an unsealed letter" it would seem that the answer of this mystery is available for anyone to find and read any time they like. My take based on this chart: Albino Luciani, Pope John Paul I, was indeed murdered by his own corrupt and deceptive brethren as a result of his policies involving the Vatican Bank. Based on transits to this chart, I'm also going to make a prediction that the story surfaces in the midst of the coverage of the papal elections, if only because some media run out of things to write about. We'll get this chart posted for you shortly. If you're really curious, drop me a note at francis@planetwaves.net and I'll send you one in .jpg format. Have a good weekend. ---- PS: Oh -- currently the Moon is in early Taurus and will remain in that sign for the rest of the weekend. The Sun is exactly square Saturn and will be all night and all of tomorrow. Mars is approaching a conjunction to Neptune, which will be in effect for the next week or so. I'm going to raise the Media Fraud Alert Level to orange, if nobody minds.