Pope: Pay no heed to prophets of doom

Pope: Christians persevere in times of trouble, ignore doomsayers

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- People who follow Christ do not listen to "prophets of doom," silly horoscopes or sermons that frighten and divide people, Pope Francis said.

Christians persevere in hope and love -- no matter what upheavals and difficulties arise, he said in a homily Nov. 13 in St. Peter's Basilica.

"This is important to distinguish the word of wisdom that God speaks to us each day from the shouting of those who seek in God's name to frighten, to nourish division and fear," he said.

...Jesus warned his disciples about it in the day's Gospel reading (Lk 21:5-19) when they begged him to reveal when and by what signs the end times would come, the pope said.

"We are constantly driven by curiosity. We want to know when and we want to see signs," he said. "Yet Jesus does not care for such curiosity."

"On the contrary, he exhorts us not to be taken in by apocalyptic preachers," the pope said. "Those who follow Jesus pay no heed to prophets of doom, the nonsense of horoscopes, or terrifying sermons and predictions that distract from the truly important things."

Editor's note:  

Has the pope read Matthew 24, Luke 21 or the Book of Revelation?  

How about the Old Testament prophecies?