Three times in Revelation 13 it uses the word “wound” to describe what happened to the papacy/beast when they lost their political and spiritual power over the Christian world. Interesting, that the Catholics use the same term to describe what happened to the church when the Protestants broke away.
Most Reformation Christians used to believe the healing of the “deadly wound” meant the Catholic Church would regain political and spiritual influence on a global level. Political power was restored with the Lateran Treaty in 1929 once again making the Vatican and independent state that receives ambassadors from around the world. This is why the Pope is invited to address the United Nations.
No Pope has made more vigorous efforts to heal the spiritual wound between Protestants and Catholics than Francis. Since his papacy began in 2013 he has successfully worked to restore communion with Lutherans, Russian orthodox, Greek orthodox, Episcopalians, Pentecostals, evangelical leaders and even Mormons. Watch YouTube below to better understand how the papacy is successfully transforming the thinking of Protestants as the Catholic Church strives to reinvent its image without changing its beliefs.
