Prophecy

The gods reveal fate through signs, oracles, and seers; mortals who heed prophecy may understand their destiny but cannot escape it.

Prophetic madness is a divine gift, higher than human calculation; the gods speak through those whose reason is suspended.

Prophetic dreams may have natural causes; divination deserves cautious investigation, not credulous acceptance or dismissive rejection.

The Hebrew prophets spoke by divine inspiration, foretelling Christ and the destiny of the City of God; pagan oracles were demons.

Prophecy is a supernatural light by which God elevates the prophet's intellect to know what exceeds natural reason.

The poet sees himself as a prophetic voice, guided through the afterlife to reveal divine justice and the destiny of Christendom.

Prognostication is mostly vanity; we remember the hits and forget the misses, and our credulity dishonors reason.

Scriptural prophecy is genuine, but claims to ongoing prophetic authority are politically dangerous and must be subject to sovereign judgment.

The early Church's prophetic claims, examined historically, reveal enthusiasm and credulity more than supernatural knowledge.